Strawberry toma de posesion
by Kit Kinya L.O.A.F member
Summary: What happens when Hichigo starts trying to take over ichigo again, even after ichigo suppressed him the first time? How will Soul Society react to this threat? Why am I asking you these questions when you could be reading? Will this summary ever end? O.o
1. Chapter 1: Hidden Struggle

_Authors note: Okay, so this is my first attempt at writing fan-fiction so sorry if this story is terrible and full of errors! I would love constructive criticism so I can make my stories better!_

_I was reading someone's fan-fiction the other day and in the reviews someone had asked if anyone had written a fan-fiction about Hichigo in soul society, so I said, "why not?" and so this story was born! XD_

_Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I wish I owned bleach and its characters, but Alas, I am not as awesome as KUBO TITE who completely owns bleach __:( _

**_Strawberry Tome De Posesión_**

Chapter one: Hidden Struggle

Ichigo was walking toward the Kuchiki Manor where he was staying while in Soul Society. He was exhausted; he had spent the whole day fighting hollows in Rukongi with Hitsugya Torshiro. There had been an unusual number as of late, and it was irritating Ichigo. He wasn't getting any sleep. That and the fact that his inner hollow had begun fighting him for control again. It seemed that his fight with Ulquiorra had strengthened his inner hollow, and it wouldn't stop pushing at the barriers of his mind taunting him.

He was interrupted from his thoughts when a small fist punched him in the face. Ichigo stumbled backward clutching his nose and looked at his assailant,

"What the heck, Rukia! What was that for?" Ichigo said angrily.

"That!" Rukia replied "was for leaving so suddenly and not telling anyone where you were going! Where were you?" She gave Ichigo a fierce glare. Ichigo sighed and ran his hand through his hair,

"Sorry Rukia, Torshiro asked me to help him with this hollow problem in outer Rukongi. The hollow's kept on showing up and we were fighting them all day. I didn't get the chance to tell you because we were in a hurry; sorry for making you worry like that." Ichigo said with a sheepish grin. Rukia starred at him for a moment before she turned away and muttered something that sounded like,

"Who was worried? Baka." Ichigo smirked and walked past her and into the Kuchiki House.

_~Ichigooooooo~_

Ichigo gasped with pain and fell on his knees clutching his head, _"No. No. No. No not you. Not now. G-GO AWAY!" _He screamed in his head. The hollow just laughed.

"ICHIGO!" Rukia screamed and rushed to his side. "Ichigo what's wrong! Ichigo!" He gasped and sat back with a groan releasing his grip on his hair.

"Nothing's wrong Rukia, I'm just tired and stressed out from fighting hollows all day. I just have a small headache, don't worry about me." Rukia stared at him with a worried expression before saying, "Well, you should get some sleep then, I'll be outside so if you need anything, just call." He agreed and she walked out of the manor and into the gardens, deep in thought.

"He is hiding something from me, THAT I know. I should keep an eye on him, something is not right here."

* * *

><p>Back in the Kuchiki Manor, Ichigo had crawled into bed and instantly fell asleep, his hollows voice echoing in his head. Unnoticed by Ichigo and Rukia, however, was a shadow that quickly and silently slipped out of sight.<p> 


	2. Chapter 2: Enemy Revealed

_Authors note:__ Yay next chapter! I'm gonna try to submit several chapters at once, let's see how that turns out! XD_

_And big thanks to those who have already reviewed my story so far! Glad you like it! I would also love constructive criticism so I can make my stories even better!_

_Also, if anyone has an idea for a cool fan-fiction, I would love to try to write it! I found out that I really like writing fan-fiction!_

_OK I'm gonna stop talking now, ONWARD to the story! XD_

Chapter Two: Enemy Revealed

Rukia returned to her brothers manor quickly, worried about Ichigo (Not that she would tell him that though). She entered the room Ichigo was sleeping in, and sat in a chair across from his bed and watched him sleep. He mumbled something and squirmed around in his bed as if he was having a small nightmare. Rukia noticed that this behavior had been happening a lot lately, and because of it, Ichigo always looked exhausted when he awoke. She starred at the orange haired boy with a helpless expression, she wanted to help him but didn't know how or what was wrong.

Suddenly, Ichigo cried out at began thrashing and flailing around. Rukia shook Ichigo trying to wake him up,

"Ichigo! Ichigo! Wake up Ichigo!" She yelled. His eyes flew open and he bolted upright in surprise. Rukia choked back a scream. The whites of his eyes had turned black, and the pupils were a deep gold. They were hollow eyes.

"Rukia?" Ichigo blinked and his eyes returned suddenly to their normal brown color. "What happened?" he asked, breathing heavily and gasping for air. She stared into his eyes for a moment longer, watching as his confusion turned into concern when she didn't answer. Had she just imagined the hollow eyes? They'd only been there for a split second... but she thought he had subdued his inner hollow when he was training with the Vaizards! What was going on?

"Rukia what's wrong?" Ichigo asked concerned. It was a moment before she answered; she was just staring at him in shock.

"N-nothing's wrong, you were just… having a bad dream." Rukia lied. Ichigo stared at her for a moment before laying back down to try to fall back to sleep,

"Well ok then, thanks I guess…" Ichigo said awkwardly. All of a sudden Ichigo's Shinigami badge started screaming,

"_Hollow hollow hollow hollow" _

Ichigo sighed, "Well I guess I won't be betting any more sleep tonight."he hopped up. Rukia nodded and informed Soul Society that they would handle it. Then they both rushed out of the manor in the direction of the hollow.

* * *

><p>"YAHHHHHH!" Ichigo yelled in a battle cry as he cut another hollow in half, "Ugh! They just keep coming!" He yelled as he watched the hollow disintegrate.<p>

"I know, and how have they gotten this far into soul society any way?" Rukia yelled from a few feet away, fighting her own hollow. "Someone or something more powerful than them must be getting them here!" She said as she stabbed the hollow in the mask.

"Ah Ha! So the little shinigami girl finally figures it out!" said a mysterious deep voice. Ichigo whirled around,

"Who's there? Show yourself!" he growled. Insane laughter filled the air. Shadows cast off buildings moved and came together and formed a humanoid hollow with only part of a broken mask on.

"An Arrancar!" gasped Rukia.

"What? That doesn't make any sense! What is an Arrancar doing here? I thought they all went into hiding since Aizen's defeat!" said Ichigo. He looked at the Arrancar; its broken mask covered half of his face. In fact, he looked a lot like Ichigo did whenever his inner hollow took over except the stripes on his mask were wavy instead of straight. The Arrancar smirked,

"Ha! Finally, the great kurosaki Ichigo! The one who singlehandedly defeated Aizen. I've been wanting to fight you for a long time!" He laughed "every time I bring all these hollows here to lure you out, some meaningless shinigami comes instead, but finally I've got you here! I'm going to make sure you don't leave here Alive!" He lunged towards Ichigo with his sword drawn and a murderous smile on his face. Ichigo raised his sword just in time to block the blow, but the force of it pushed Ichigo back several feet. Then Rukia came up behind the Arrancar, her sword raised above her head, ready to deal a fatal blow. But before she could swing however, the Arrancar had used sonido to get out of the way quickly. Rukia's sword slammed into the ground where the Arrancar stood just seconds before.

"Just stay back Rukia, I'll handle this! This is my fight so don't interfere!" Ichigo stated, not taking his eyes off the Arrancar. Rukia was about to retort when the Arrancar reappeared a few feet behind her. Rukia and Ichigo turned to face him.

"Just who are you?" Ichigo snarled

"Oh of course! I forgot that shinigami like to know the name of the person who kills them!" the Arrancar mused "I am known as Nefarious Serpine, and I was sent here to kill you!" He laughed and lunged towards Ichigo again.

_"…Sent…?"_ Rukia thought as Serpine and Ichigo clashed and exchanged blows.

* * *

><p>Ichigo had not expected the Arrancar called Serpine to be this fast, given his slightly bulky appearance. He was barely able to block any of the blows Serpine sent his way, and could not deal out any attacks of his own.<p>

"Is that all you got?" Serpine taunted with a little disappointment apparent in his voice. "I thought the guy who defeated Aizen would be much stronger than this!" Serpine smirked. Ichigo scowled, he had underestimated Serpine. He thought he would be able to beat this guy without using Bankai, but was wrong. He stopped and swung Zangetzu forward, the white cloth hanging from the end of his sword wrapped around his arm,

"BAN-KAI!" Ichigo yelled. Black and red spiritual energy started flowing and swirling around him. He was surrounded by a huge and violent whirlpool of dust and energy. Serpine starred in anticipation and heard Ichigo say,

"Tense Zangetzu" and he sung down his now normal black katana from inside the whirlpool, dispersing it. Ichigo stood with his red and black Bankai uniform blowing in the wind. Serpine looked mildly impressed,

"Ha-ha! This is going to be interesting!" Serpine said, but before he could do anything, Ichigo completely disappeared from view in a flash step and reappeared behind the startled arrancar,

"Wha..?" he said as he barely blocked the attack in time. Serpine's feet sunk into the ground with the force of Ichigo's blow. Ichigo swung again and again using flash step to gain the speed advantage, but Serpine blocked all of his blows. Neither opponent was gaining any ground. Ichigo seemed a little faster, but Serpine made up for it with his strength.

Rukia was standing a ways back. She kept on wanting to help Ichigo whenever she saw and opening in Serpine's defenses, but she knew Ichigo would be angry with her. He never wanted Rukia to help him. "_It's because I'm too weak to help and would just get in the way_." Rukia thought miserably. She just wanted to be able to help Ichigo, like he helped her when she was going to be executed by Soul Society. But she knew that she wasn't strong enough. As she watched Ichigo and Serpine fight, her thoughts wandered towards what the arrancar had said earlier,

_"I was sent here to kill you."_ What did he mean by that? Aizen was defeated, so who had taken charge? Who could be controlling the Arrancar now? She watched as Serpine was pushed to the ground by the force of Ichigo's attack.

"Looks like I'll need to step up my game to be able to beat you! Serpine admitted and laughed as he pulled himself out of the crater he just made. Serpine held his sword in front of him, blade face down (like Byakuya when he goes into Bankai). "Aguijón blanco, hueco influencia." (Sting white, hollow influence) There was an explosion of Reitsu and greenish white light. When the dust cleared, Ichigo and Rukia gasped.

"What _is _that?"

* * *

><p><em>Authors note: ok so i have to credit the name of this fan-fiction one of my best friends, Miss Perfect Insanity!<em>

_Perfect Insanity: WAZZZZZUUUPPPPP! XD_

_Me: WAZZZUUUUUPPPP! XD_

_Also look out for my next fan-fiction called Covered in Bleach! Co- written by Miss. Perfect Insanity  
><em>


	3. Chapter 3: A Hollows Influence

_Authors note: YAY! The reviews are awesome! I'm so excited about writing this now! I was really worried that no one would like it! Sorry that my chapters Are sooooo short! DX I can't help it! SORRY! And if I don't update for a while than it's because I write slow, and I gotta worry about school….._

_Oh and I'm also starting another fan-fic called Covered in Bleach! Check it out!_

Chapter Three: A hollows influence

Serpine's sword was no longer there, instead his fingers had elongated into long blade like claws. His shoulders were covered with scale like armor. His legs had a dragon like appearance. From his back came a long armored scorpion like tail in which had several sharp spikes protruding from the end. The spikes secreted a thick white substance that looked like some type of poison.

"No one can stop me now! Grovel before the might of NEFARIOUS SERIPNE! AHAHAhahahahhaha!" he laughed. Ichigo stared at Serpine with a, _what ego drug are you taking? _Look on his face.

"Don't get so full of yourself when you haven't even won yet!" Ichigo said irritably. Serpine smirked and leaped forward with his claws extended. Ichigo brought his sword up to block the attack, but to his surprise Serpine's tail whipped around to catch him off guard. Ichigo tried to shift and block this new attack, but he found he couldn't move.

_~ HA! Not so fast Ichigo! ~_

Ichigo froze mid- block.

_~ I won't let ya beat this guy this fast, his power is very… interesting! ~_

Serpine's tail was getting closer. Ichigo needed to block but he couldn't move!

_~ Very interesting indeed, AHAHAHAHAH! ~_

Ichigo was confused _'What? What do you mean by that?'_ Ichigo asked

His hollow just laughed at him

_~ You'll see, Ahahahahahahahahahahahahaha! ~_

His laughter faded away as Serpine's tail hit Ichigo dead on. Ichigo cried out in pain as the spikes on Serpine's tail punctured Ichigo's stomach, and right shoulder. The momentum sent Ichigo flying through the air crashing into a nearby building. Rukia gasped

"ICHIGO!" She screamed.

(divider)

Ichigo struggled out of the rubble of the building he crashed through. His whole body ached. His chest and right shoulder were bleeding heavily. His eyesight waivered and blurred, he could barely stay standing and swayed where he stood. Ichigo collapsed on one knee and stuck his sword in the ground to keep from falling. Suddenly Ichigo felt like he was suffocating, he could barely move, he felt like the weight of the world had just crashed down on his shoulders. He started shaking violently,

_"What's happening to me?"_ Ichigo wondered _"I only got hit by his one attack in the stomach and shoulder. I mean, sure I'm losing some blood and it does hurt… but it should not be affecting me like this, and what did my hollow mean by Serpine having an interesting power? I didn't notice anything! That last attack wasn't even a killing shot!"_ He thought as he gasped for breath and groaned. Rukia rushed over,

"Ichigo, are you all right? We need to get you to squad four!" Then suddenly the horrible feeling Ichigo had went away almost as quickly as it came. He took in a shaky deep breath and looked up at Rukia.

"I'll be fine, where's Serpine?" Ichigo asked as he tensed up expecting a surprise attack. Rukia looked confused.

"I don't know, after he smashed you through that building he just said,

_"I guess my work here is done, whatever, I thought this would be more fun and last longer"_ And then he opened a gargantua and left!" Now Ichigo looked confused too.

"I thought he said he wanted to kill me and wouldn't let me leave alive!" Ichigo wondered as Rukia helped him up.

"I don't know, and I'm not sure what's going on, but first things first; we've got to get you to squad four." Ichigo nodded and they trudged off Rukia supporting Ichigo's weight.

(divider)

_Authors note: I get some of my inspiration for this story from the song "The Bird and the Worm" by the Used. Check it out! :D _

_The song reminds me of Ichigo and Hichigo. XD _

_BEST. SONG. EVER!_


	4. Chapter 4: Coma

_Authors note: Yay! Another chapter done! Hehe this is fun! ^-^_

_Sorry if it takes me a little while to update, I've written like, six chapters already, but I just haven't typed them up yet ^^' Hehe…yeaaahhhhhh…._

_I've also had a little bit of writers block, but don't worry I won't quit this story! Thanks to all who are reading and reviewing! :D_

Chapter Four: Coma

On the way to squad four, Rukia and Ichigo bumped into Hanatorou who quickly escorted them to the fourth division barracks. Upon arriving, Ichigo was rushed into a free operating room, where he was treated upon immediately by Hanatorou.

* * *

><p>About an hour later Hanatorou came out of Ichigo's room and approached Rukia who had been waiting in the hallway outside.<p>

"How is he?" Rukia asked worriedly as Hanatorou approached her.

"He's fine, nothing he can't handle," replied Hanatorou, "but there was something strange about his wounds… They had traces of a thick white substance in them. I asked Unohana-Taicho to send a sample to squad twelve for testing. Ichigo should stay here for the time being, at least until we get the results from that sample back." Rukia frowned, that did not sound good… She walked past Hanatorou into Ichigo's room to see him sleeping on a medical bed with bandages around his midsection. He had a slight frown on his face and was wheezing slightly, but otherwise seemed fine. She walked beside him.

"Hey Ichigo, Ichigo wake up!" She shook him gently, but he wouldn't wake.

"That was the other thing I wanted to tell you…" Hanatorou said guiltily, "He won't wake up, he's like in a coma-like state, we don't know why. He is almost completely healed so there is no reason he should be like this, although it may have something to do with that white liquid we found on him." he looked helplessly at Ichigo. "We have tried everything, but he just won't wake up." Hanatorou sighed and looked at Rukia; she had a worried look on her face. "Don't worry Rukia, we will know more about Ichigo's condition once we get those results back from the twelfth division." He gave Rukia a reassuring smile, and then walked out of the room to help other patients. Rukia sighed and sat in a chair next to Ichigo's bed side. She wished she could somehow help him. Ichigo had helped her so much,

"S_o why can't I ever help him?"_ she sighed. She felt so useless.

* * *

><p>Rukia stayed with Ichigo for the next few days, she rarely left his bedside hoping he would wake. He didn't wake up, or even stir, not once. Word spread and soon Ishida, Chad, Orihime, and Renji came to visit Ichigo and asked Rukia for an explanation. Rukia told them how Ichigo had been defeated in a fight, and had been injected with a strange liquid that so far has done nothing but keep him in a coma. However, she left out the part when Ichigo suddenly froze right before getting hit with Serpine's tail. She could have sworn his eyes had flashed black and gold.<p>

Renji and the others accepted her answer and left after wishing Ichigo well. Rukia stayed with Ichigo again that night.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Rukia woke up with a start; she had fallen asleep in her chair.<p>

"_I fell asleep? I didn't mean too…" _she thought. Rukia stood up and stretched. She looked over at Ichigo, he was still unconscious, nothing had changed. No, wait, something HAD changed, he looked like he was having another nightmare. His eyes were moving quickly under his eyelids and his breathing had gotten faster. He had a dark scowl on his face. Then, without warning Ichigo's Spiritual pressure dropped then soared, but this time it had an evil aura about it. His hand shot out and grabbed Rukia around the throat. She gasped and struggled to get out of Ichigo's chocking grasp. His head turned towards her as his eyes opened. Rukia screamed. They weren't Ichigo's eyes, they were hollow eyes.

_Authors note: Whew done! I'm feeling strangely optimistic about how this story will turn out! Sorry about the short chapters, I'll try to make them longer... _

_Please Review! :D_


	5. Chapter 5: Takeover

_Authors note: Sorry I took so long to update, the computer I was typing on broke, and my laptop had a nasty virus, but everything is okay now :)_

_I would also like to thank MissIF for the awesome constructive criticism! Thanks I will defiantly do my best to make my story better and my chapters longer! :D_

Chapter 5: Takeover

Ichigo stood up. No, not Ichigo, the hollow stood up, still holding Rukia in his grasp. She struggled, choking and turning blue.

"I-Ichi...go..." she gasped, her hands clawing at his grip. He looked at Rukia, his scowl broke out into a wide insane grin.

"! Finally! Im back in control! Now I get to have some REAL fun!" Ichigo's hollow said. He threw Rukia against the wall. She slammed into it with a thud and slid to the floor with several broken ribs. she groaned and looked up, the hollow was flexing his fingers and giggling insanely. Rukia drew her sword and pointed it at Ichigo. He looked at her with mocking amusement.

"Give Ichigo back!" Rukia seethed, trying not to show the pain she felt in her back. He smirked at her and laughed.

"HA! Like you could do anything in your state!" He taunted as he let out a huge burst of spiritual pressure. Rukia gasped, she could barely breath under the crushing power of Ichigo's hollow Reitsu. _How __could __Ichigo __EVER __have __subdued __a __monster __like __that!_ Rukia thought as she squeezed her eyes shut in pain and tried to breath. Suddenly the pressure dropped. Rukia looked up in surprise.

Ichigo was gone.

* * *

><p>Hollow Ichigo left the squad four barracks after getting bored of terrorizing Rukia. She could never put up a fight with him. He was itching for a good fight. He ended up sneaking around Serietei by masking his reitsu and observing the reitsu of others to see if they could put up a good fight or not. He wasn't in a hurry though, really he just wanted to move. Just then he noticed a familiar strong reitsu nearing his direction. Hollow ichigo attempted to mask his Reistu even more. The familiar Reistu got even closer. Hollow Ichigo calmly walked down the empty street licking his lips in anticipation for the imminent fight to come.<p>

"Yo Ichigo!" said a voice. Hollow Ichigo stopped.

"Ahhhh...it was Renji's reistu I was sensing! Heh this is gonna be fun!" Hollow ichigo mused.

"Hey, I thought you were still in the infirmary! I mean jeez your an idiot making rukia worry like that! Oi! Ichigo Im talking to you!" Renji yelled as he stomped up to the hollow, unaware of the danger.

"Che, you sure you were talkin' to ichigo?" Hollow Ichigo said and turned his head to look at Renji, showing off his trademark grin. The mask steadily creeping over his face. Renji stopped dead in surprise and took a step back in shock.

"Ichigo? What happened to you? Whats goin-ACK!" He was cut off as the inner hollow sonidoed in front of Renji and punched him in the face, sending Renji flying into a nearby wall. Hollow Ichigo laughed his crazy laugh.

"Ha! That was fun heheeehehheheheh!" Renji struggled to regain the breath that was knocked out of him. He rubbed his jaw,

"Your not Ichigo...your his hollow aren't you? Renji stated.

Hollow Ichigo stared at him for a few seconds,

"Well no freakin duh!" He said with an annoyed look on his face. He laughed, "Wow, your slow... you didn't even notice the change in our reistu! Your so stupid! HA!" Renji scowled.

"How did you get control? I thought Ichigo subdued you!" renji said ignoring hollow ichigo's snide remarks. The hollow just grinned and walked towards Renji,

"Hehe, thats for me to know and you to never find out, considering your so stupid! He sonidoed up to Renji and grabbed him around the throat. He was about to strangle the life out of him when he heard a voice,

"Scatter Senbonzakura" Hollow Ichigo froze. Renji's eyes widened and he struggled to speak in the hollow's death grip.

"C-captain...Ku...ch...iki" Renji choked out. Hollow Ichigo turned to see his new assailant, but only saw a wave of pink petals flying towards him. He dropped Renji and jumped into the air to avoid the attack. He glared down at the man who had ruined his fun.

"Your that hollow of Ichigo's am I correct?" Byakuya stated. Hollow Ichigo sighed and a vein popped on his head.

"Why does everyone need to ask that? DUH! Obviously! Who else would I be?" Hollow Ichigo yelled. He crossed his arms. "I mean seriously, I even fought you once! Remember that? HA I owned you!" Hollow Ichigo smirked and dropped back down to the ground. Byakuya stared at him with indifference,

"I was merely asking because you have no name that I can call and recognize you by." He said calmly as senbonzakura's petals flew towards Hollow Ichigo again. Hollow ichigo smiled in anticipation and drew Zangetzu to block the onslaught, but another wave came up behind him. Hollow Ichigo hesitated in surprise. His moment of hesitation however, gave byakuya an opening, he directed the petals to surround the hollow. Hollow Ichigo's surprise turned into frustration as he was completely surrounded and enclosed in a petal sphere. byakuya held him in the sphere for a few moments before withdrawing the attack. The petals flowed back to byakuya and reformed his sword. Hollow Ichigo fell to the ground, covered in cuts all over his body. He groaned and struggled to his feet.

"Che, that was a dirty trick." Hollow ichigo smiled as he wiped some blood from his mouth. He grinned, " I told you I didn't have a name, but if you insist, I'll just make one up then..." he put a finger to his chin and thought for a moment before breaking out into a big grin, " How about Shiro! I like that name!" he started giggling. "Just call meh Shiro!" he exclaimed. Byakuya stared at him unfazed.

"Well then, _Shiro_, I am byakuya Kuchiki, and I will defeat you." Shiro smirked.

"HA! I beat you last time, what makes you think you can beat me again?" he taunted. Byakuya said nothing, but he held his sword out in front of him, blade down. Shiro's eyes narrowed. Byakuya released his sword and it fell and sunk into the ground.

"Bankai Senbonzakura Kageyoshi" Hundreds of huge blades rose out of the ground on either side of Byakuya. They exploded into millions of tiny flower petal blades and swarmed towards Shiro.

"Che I can match that! Getsuga Tensho!" The two attacks collided with a sonic boom. both opponents stared into the smoke caused by the collision, waiting for the other to attack. Shiro chuckled and released a small getsuga tenshou to disperse the smoke, and used sonido to appear behind byakuya. Byakuya's eyes widened as shiro slashed Zangetzu down his grunted in pain and fell on one knee. Shiro set Zangetzu on his shoulders and laughed. "Hahahahahhaha, this is too easy! I can block your bankai with one Getsuga Tenshou! You could never hope to beat me alone!" he said with a little disappointment apparent in his voice. Byakuya uncharacteristically smirked.

"Who ever said I was alone?" he said. Shiro's eyes widened as a giant bone snake appeared behind him.

"Bankai Hihio Zabimaru." Shiro whirled around just in time to see renji whip his giant bone snake sword at him. It slammed into him, smashing him into the side of a tall building. The impact created a crater in the wall, Shiro fell to the ground and coughed up blood.

"Why you!" He growled. Renji smirked.

"Now who's bad at sensing Reitsu?" Renji taunted. Shiro scowled as he got to his feet.

"Grrr, don't underestimate me!" Shiro yelled. His reitsu exploded, his mask now almost completely covered his face. He yelled and jumped at renji charging a Getsuga Tenshou in his blade. Renji swung his snake sword towards shiro. He dodged, and renji whipped his sword around causing the snake to adjust its course and charge Shiro again.

"HikŌtsu taihŌ!" (baboon bone cannon)

"Getsuga Tenshou"

The two attacks collided creating a huge and violent blast that completely obliterated all nearby buildings. The shockwave dissipated and there was silence. Eventually the smoke cleared. Shiro had large burns on his chest and arms, and was breathing heavily, but otherwise unharmed. Renji, however, had left himself wide open in order to execute his attack and was unable to block Shiro's Getsuga. He had a long deep gash down his chest and serious burns all over his torso. He was wheezing badly, Zabimaru shattered, its segments blown all over the immediate area. Renji swayed and coughed up blood.

"Crap..." he said and collapsed. Shiro turned towards byakuya and sneered.

"And then there were two" he said. Byakuya frowned in thought._ "__How __am __I __supposed __to __defeat __this __hollow, __he's crazy, __and defeated __Renji __with out __even __using __Bankai!__" _Suddenly movement behind shiro caught his eye. Renji was getting up, he looked horrible but had a determined glint in his eyes. Byakuya suspected he knew what Renji was going to try to attempt, so he would have to stall Shiro until Renji was ready. Byakuya used flash step to appear right in front of Shiro. He quickly swung his sword down to slash Shiro across his chest, but was blocked by Zangetzu. Shiro snickered, "Too slow!" he warned and pushed byakuya's sword back. He then slashed his sword down byakuya's chest. Byakuya grimaced and pointed his finger at Shiro's face,

"Hado 33 SŌkatsui!" A large beam of lightning energy shot out of his fingertips towards Shiro, but he sidestepped the blast and laughed.

"Did you really expect to hit me with that slow low-level attack?" He said as he stared down at byakuya, as the latter struggled to get to his feet.

"Of course not." Byakuya stated, "I was merely stalling you." he said calmly as he looked at Shiro with cold, calculating eyes. Shiro's eyes widened, startled,

"Wha-?" he started to say when he was cut off.

"Higa ZekkŌ!"(bite of a broken baboon's fang) He heard Renji shout. Shiro whirled around as all of Zabimaru's segments rose into the air. Before Shiro could react, they slammed into him from all directions, impaling him in the shoulders, chest, and back. Shiro gasped and stumbled backwards, loosing lots of blood that pooled on the ground beneath him.

"H-how... wha-" he choked out. He could feel his body shutting down. _"__No! __I __wont __loose __like __this!__"_ he desperately thought to himself as he fell to his knees. He could no longer breath, his lungs had been punctured. He slowly raised his head to look at Renji with loathing, " I-I wont... l-loose...to...you..." He croaked gasping for breath. He made one more desperate attempt to get back up, but he could no longer move. His heart slowing down. " D-Darn...y..o..u" he muttered and gritted his teeth. His arms completely gave out and he collapsed with a groan the light slowly leaving his eyes. Then he was still. Renji bowed his head,

"Sorry... Ichigo..." he muttered before he collapsed in exhaustion and blood loss. Byakuya stared at shiro's body and sighed in relief that the whole mess was over. _"__Hopefully __our __fluctuating __Reitsu __attracted __attention, __I __don't __think __I __could __carry __renji __and __Ichigo __to __the __squad __four __barracks __myself.__"_ he thought as his vision blurred._ "__They __better __hurry __If __they __want __any __hope __of saving __Ichigo.__"_ he thought as he looked at shiro's body once more. He surprisingly felt uncharacteristic sympathy for the boy.

* * *

><p>Luckily for rukia, Captain Unohana had sensed the change in Ichigo's Reitsu and hurried to his room. There she found Rukia slumped against the wall. The Captain immediately moved her to a new room and applied medical treatment on her.<p>

Rukia woke a bit later. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She didn't recognize where she was. She tried to get up, but a sharp pain in her back and chest caused her to cringe and lay back down.

"Please try to refrain from moving too much Miss. Rukia." said a soft and calm voice. "You have several broken ribs and some serious bruising on your back." Said the smooth voice. Rukia turned her head to see owner of the voice.

"Ah! Captain Unohana! I didn't see you there! Where are we?" Rukia exclaimed. She looked around, she was in a small room painted light pink with medical equipment in it. Like a heart monitor and IV fluid and the like. She was lying in a bed on the left side of the room under a window. Captain Unohana was standing in the doorway on the opposite side of the bed.

"Don't worry, we are in a operating room near the one Ichigo used to be in. I know you need to rest, however would you mind telling me what happened in there?" Unohana asked gesturing towards Ichigo's room. Rukia sighed.

"I don't want to believe it but...Ichigo's inner hollow has taken over him again!" She closed her eyes, "How could I have been so stupid! All the signs were there but I didn't see them, or I just didn't want to see them. Those headaches Ichigo would get, the nightmares... and his eyes, his eyes turned into hollow eyes twice, maybe more than that!" She felt so ashamed for ignoring the obvious signs. Rukia opened her eyes and looked up at Unohana. She was wide eyed and was looking at Rukia with disbelieving eyes.

"That shouldn't be possible." she muttered with disbelief. "He trained with the Vizards to make his inner hollow submit to him! Hanatorou noticed nothing unusual with Ichigo when he was healing him, except for that white substan-... wait! You don't think that that white stuff in his wounds caused this?" she wondered aloud to Rukia. Rukia shook her head, "I don't think so... He was struggling with his inner hollow before he got infected with that stuff, However I do think there is a connection between the them..." Unohana nodded in agreement.

"We must speak with the Captain Commander immediately then! He has called a captains meeting to find a way to kill a powerful hollow that is fighting both Byakuya and Renji near the 6th squad barracks, and winning!" Unohana said with urgency. "The Commander General must not have noticed Ichigo's reitsu because his own hollow's tainted Reitsu is covering his up!" Rukia gasped,

"No! Captain, you have to help me get to that meeting!" She said hurriedly as she tried to ignore the pain in her back and get up. Unohana urged her to stay in bed, but Rukia would have nothing of it. "Don't try to stop me Captain, I HAVE to help Ichigo! Please help me get into that meeting!" she pleaded. Unohana sighed in defeat. "Alright, I'll help you, just don't overexert yourself okay?" she asked. Rukia nodded in thanks and they both walked out, Unohana supporting Rukia's weight.

* * *

><p>They arrived at the meeting not too long after they left because of Unohana's fast flash step. They arrived outside the huge front doors to the meeting hall, and unohana set Rukia down gently. Rukia winced a little but could stand. "Hurry!" She said and limped towards the door and pushed them open. All the captains in the meeting turned there attention to Rukia immediately.<p>

"Miss Kuchiki, you are not allowed to attend emergency captains meetings! You must leave immediately!" Boomed Commander General Yamamoto. Rukia ignored him and proceeded to the center of the meeting hall, she then kneeled in front of Yamamoto.

"Forgive me sir but I have very important news regarding the hollow that Captain kuchiki and Vice-Captain Abarai are currently in battle with. Please let me speak!" She said politely but urgently. The Captain Commander looked furious that she was in the captains only meeting without permission, but granted her the right to speak out of curiosity.

"Alright what do you know? This better be important!" He growled. Rukia stood and took a deep breath.

"That hollow is Ichigo!" she said. The captains gasped.

"How is that possible?" asked Captain Ukitake of the 13th division.

"I've always wanted to experiment on that interesting boy..." Captain Kurotshuchi Mayuri of the 12th Squad said slyly.

"How do you know this?" Commanded Captain Soifon of the 2nd Squad

"I was there when his inner hollow took over!" Rukia said. Then, without warning, the doors opened and in ran Ishida, chad, and Orihime.

"Don't hurt the hollow, its Ichigo!" Ishida yelled. Every one starred at them. Rukia laughed.

"Thank guys but I already told them." Rukia informed them and explained to everyone everything that happened and what she saw. After she finished explaining she waited patiently while the captains started muttering amongst themselves. Ishida pushed his glasses up with his finger looking concerned, but also embarrassed because he made a big scene. Then all of a sudden Ichigo's crushing spiritual pressure disappeared. Everyone froze.

"NO ICHIGO!" Rukia gasped.

"Kurosaki-Kun!" Yelled Orihime

"Ichigo..." said chad

Captain Zaraki kenpachi of the fight loving 11th squad spoke up,

"Well it doesn't seem like his hollow was all that tuff if he couldn't last through one fight with a captain and a lieutenant!" he said in a bored tone. Everyone starred at him. "What?" he said.

"We need to get squad four medics out there! If you didn't notice, Renji's spiritual pressure has dropped dangerously low, as well as byakuya's!" Ishida said. "If they get there fast enough, then they might be able to save Ichigo too!" but just as he said that Ichigo's spiritual pressure exploded and felt even heavier and more hollow like than ever.

"Whats going on?" Rukia asked as she was forced to her knees by the overwhelming spiritual pressure.

Ishida gasped and looked at Orihime who had a knowing look in her eyes. "His hollow is evolving!" Ishida said disbelievingly

* * *

><p><em>Authors <em>_note: __Yay! __First __long __chapter __done! __Whew __that __took __forever!__Sorry __for __any __OOC __ness...__And __sorry __for __the __cliff __hanger __but __just __felt __right __to __end __the __chapter __there __:/_

_This story is only going to get more exiting!_

_Please feel free to give feedback on this story and Review! :D_


	6. Chapter 6: Struggle

_Authors note: Wow, i just realized this could end up being a pretty long story... I might need to write a sequel..._

Chapter 6: Struggle

Shiro was dying, he knew it. He could feel his body shutting down. He couldn't breath, his lungs wouldn't work, all he could do was lie down and wait for death. But something kept his will to live alive.

_"I can't die here!"_ He thought angrily,_ "I just got my freedom, and I wont have it end now! I wont be beaten by that stupid dog Renji, or that stuck up princess byakuya! I want to fight more! I want to fight and win, I want to enjoy my freedom and have fun! Nothing can beat me! I will get stronger! I have not even used bankai or my hollow powers yet! I can still fight! I. will. Not. DIE!"_ Shiro thought with determination as he taped into his fallow hollow powers, and activated his instant regeneration. He immediately felt different, more powerful. His body then started changing, accommodating the change in his reitsu. Shiro's body started emitting a red and black energy. A hollow hole opened up in his chest and he started to stand, he slowly got to his feet his wounds closing, he started breathing raggedly as his lungs healed. The first major change in his appearance was that shiro's orange hair grew all the way down his back. The next change was that a white goo like solid exploded out of Shiro's hollow hole and started covering his whole body. The goo solidified into a hard shell, forming spikes on his shoulders, as well as long claw like fingers and lizard like feet. His mask was complete and had a red strip going down each side. Red stripes also ran down his now white arms and chest. The final and most drastic change was the tail that grew out of his back and whipped back and forth. Overall Shiro had a lizard like appearance to him. His breathing had a strained hollow like sound to it. Shiro's instincts had become dominant and were controlling his judgment, his normal clever and rationalized reasoning had turned onto pure and basic instinct. He took a step forward, his foot crushing the rubble underneath him. And he roared a loud and guttural hollow roar.

(divider)

Byakuya stared at shiro as his nearly nonexistent Reitsu suddenly exploded with such force that byakuya, in his weakened state, was thrown backwards. He quickly got to his feet and stared at the creature that Shiro was turning into. _"__Impossible!__"_ He thought as he stared at the monster before him in shock. _"__He __was __practically __dead __just __a __moment __ago! __How...? __This __is __not __good, __I __can't __fight __him __in __my __state, __as __much __as __I __hate __to __admit __it, __he __is __stronger __than __me __right __now. __But, __I __can__'__t __retreat __now, __renji __is __still __here, __and __I __can __not __let __this...thing __get __any __farther __into Soul S__ociety. __It __is __my __duty __to __protect S__oul S__ociety.__"_ Byakuya raised his sword. Shiro roared and picked up zangetzu. Byakuya activated his bankai and directed his petal blades to flow around them. "I will fight to my dying breath, Senkei Senbonzakura" He said as all of his blades came together and formed thousands of individual pink blades.

* * *

><p>"What do you mean, he's evolving?" Commander General Yamamoto asked Ishida. Everyone was now starring at Ishida, who pushed up his glasses and was about to reply when another interrupted.<p>

"I believe I can answer that Commander Yamamoto" said Captain Mayuri. He smirked at Ishida and took out a small portable computer and started typing on it for a few seconds before showing the screen to everyone. "The results for the testing of that white substance have come in, and I have to say they are very interesting!" He said with a large grin. "The hollow that Kurosaki Ichigo was fighting injected this substance into him during there battle. What I thin-" he was interrupted by Kenpachi

"Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, get to the point, what does the stuff actually do?" He said impatiently.

"I was getting there you sadistic barbarian!" Mayuri said curtly. Kenpachi gritted his teeth and was about to retort when Mayuri continued, "What the results have shown is that the substance influences a hollows basic instincts and desires. For example, If an ordinary hollow were injected with this substance, It would become more violent and more powerful than usual. Yet if an Aranncar gets injected with this substance than they not only become more dangerous and violent, but there deepest and most basic desire is what they drive to achieve. So if, for instance, an Arrancar wants to become king of all other hollows, than it will try to do so even if there is absolutely no chance of that ever happening. There most basic Instincts and desires rule there reasoning and judgement.

In Ichigo's case, the substance has given his inner hollow a chance to take over ichigo's body. His hollow is more dangerous than ever now because he will stop at nothing to make whatever his deepest desire is, a reality. Although the substance seems to take a while before fully affecting the host." Mayuri concluded.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Captain Hitsugaya.

"I mean," replied Mayuri, "That Ichigo's hollow has not been completely contaminated yet, it takes time for the substance to completely infect the subject. This means that his inner hollow just beat Captain Kuchiki and Lieutenant Abarai and he was at his weakest." Everyone gasped "Also, I believe that fatally injuring or killing his hollow will only speed the process and make him angrier and even stronger." Mayuri finished.

"So I'm guessing that is exactly what just happened considering Ichigo's sudden drop, and then spike in spiritual pressure?" commented Komamura. Mayuri nodded, and Kenpachi smiled.

"This is gonna be good!" he said with anticipation. Rukia interjected,

"But remember you cant defeat him just by inuring or killing him! It wont work! The only way to stop him is to contain him until we can find an antidote to the substance." she warned, relieved that they wouldn't have to kill Ichigo. The commander general nodded,

"I agree with Miss kuchiki, however, if an antidote cannot be found or if Ichigo's hollow cannot be contained, then we will be forced to find a way to eliminate him. He won't keep on evolving forever, eventually he will reach his limit." Warned Yamamoto. Everyone nodded in agreement, although a few somewhat reluctantly. "Very well, we will need to split up into separate squadrons. The first will go immediately to where Kurosaki is and attempt to contain him, and get Captain Kuchiki and Lieutenant Abarai out of the immediate area so they can receive medical attention from standing by 4th squad members. If the first squad cannot contain Kurosaki quickly or needs backup, then the second squadron will go and assist them. The squadrons who are not currently fighting with kurosaki will be helping me maintain a protective barrier around the battle field so no further destruction can take place. Okay everyone split into squadrons and we will begin.

* * *

><p>Once the captains and former Ryoka split into there respective groups, the first squadron was deployed into the battle. The first squadron consisted of Chad, Captain Hitsugaya, Captain Kenpachi, and Captain Kommaura. The second squadron, the backup squadron consisted of Rukia, Ishida, Captain Soifon and Captain Kyouraku. The last squad consisted of Ukitake and Orihime, who would not participate in battle. Ukitake because of his sickness would be helping Yamamoto the whole time, and Orihime because of her special abilities would be helping Captain Unohana and the Fourth squad.<p>

The first squad headed towards where Ichigo's hollow reitsu and byakuya's weakening Reitsu was clashing. The other squads followed a little behind to help with the barrier. Captain Hitsugaya arrived first with the others right behind him. What he saw made his eyes go wide. The hollow was standing in what was clearly the scene of a great battle, Rubble of destroyed buildings was everywhere, but what drew his attention was what the hollow was holding in his grasp. The Hollow's right arm was grasping byakuya around the neck, choking him. Byakuya was only just staying conscious and was was covered in deep gashes all over his body. Although he still seemed to be resisting. His pink blades continuously slammed into the hollows body trying to get him to release his grip. This was to little effect however, because the hollow was unfazed and unharmed by the attacks and only tightened it's grip on byakuya's throat in retaliation. The others arrived and gasped at what was happening while Hitsugaya noticed Renji lying unconscious in the distance,

"Captain Komamura, you and Zaraki help byakuya while Chad and I get Renji to safety!" yelled Hitsugaya. They nodded and ran to the hollow. Chad followed Captain Hitsugaya and together they were able to move Renji to a temporary station near the battle site where squad four was waiting.

Kenpachi ran up to the hollow laughed as he came up behind it and slashed down. His blow was blocked, however, by the hollow's sword. It had used its free arm to grab Zangetzu and block behind its back. Angered, the hollow pushed Kenpachi back with an elbow to the face, threw byakuya into the remains of a tower to the left which knocked him unconscious, and let out an ear piercing roar. Kenpachi stumbled backwards from the blow while Komamura ran towards Hollow ichigo.

"Hey this is my fight don't interfere!" Yelled Kenpachi angrily.

"I don't think this is the time for a one on one fight!" said Komamura simply as he passed kenpachi and raised his sword, "Roar Tenken!" he yelled, and a giant disembodied arm holding a giant sword appeared beside him. Komamura swung down his sword, and the giant arm did the same, aiming at the hollow, but right before the sword would have hit the hollow it dodged and ran forward. It then proceeded to attack Komamura with a series of berserk and random blows in quick succession. Komamura was pushed back on the defensive. Zaraki then intervened and they both started dealing out attacks that then caused the hollow to go on the defensive, they exchanged blows and Zaraki sent out a blast of spiritual power and laughed as he slashed the hollows arm. It roared and jumped back. It stared at them with hatred and raised its right arm with fingers extended and close together. A large red circular beam of energy started forming around his fingers.

"Csssseeeerrrooooooooooo!" the hollow screamed out in a barely recognizable guttural roar. A read beam of pure destructive energy surged out towards Zaraki and komamura.

"Look out!" yelled chad. He and hitsugaya had just returned to the battle. Komamura just barely dodged the blast while Kenpachi was too slow and got hit on the left side of his body with the blast, burning his skin and rendering his left arm useless. He grimaced in pain yet laughed.

"Ha! I hadn't expected I would have to give it my all this soon, but oh well, this should be great fight!" Kenpachi said and pulled his eyepatch off. His spiritual pressure exploded tremendously and a column of yellow spiritual energy formed around him and shot into the air. komamura nodded his head,

"I should go all out as well, Bankai! Kokujō tengen myō'ō!" he yelled. His Reitsu burst and a giant 100 meter tall armored samurai appeared next to komamura. Komamura went into a fighting stance and the giant did the same, mimicking his movements. hitsugayga did the same.

"Bankai Daiguren Hyōrinmaru!" yelled Hitsugaya tersely. A whirlpool of energy surrounded him and when it dispersed hitsugaya had large ice wings on his back, an ice dragon head covered his right hand and connected it to his sword. A long ice tail extended from the back of the ice wings, and ice covered his feet making them look like dragon feet. He starred at the hollow that used to be Ichigo with cool, confident eyes. Chad then stepped up.

"Brazo Derecho Del Gigante" He said, and his right arm transformed into a red and black armor shield used for defense. "Brazo Izquierda Del Diablo." said chad immediately after the first. His left arm transformed into a red and white arm with a spike protruding from the shoulder used for offensive attacks.

The four stood facing The hollow and prepared to attack. The hollow lunged forward with Zangetzu extended.

"Rahhhhrrrrhhhrrrrhhh!" It yelled as it neared the group. Kenpachi tightened his grip on his sword.

"Bring it on!" he said, and stepped forward to meet the hollows attack with his own. There attacks clashed and a huge shockwave rebounded when there blades met. They exchanged blows and each time there swords connected, there was a sonic boom and shockwaves rebounded. Kenpachi was laughing insanely while the hollow was growling, neither gaining ground.

"Reign over the Frosted Heavens Hyōrninmaru!" Hitsugaya yelled and a large ice dragon erupted from the tip of his sword and flew towards the hollow. It slammed into it and froze its feet to the ground. It snarled as it struggled to free itself. Komamura then swung his sword down. The giant did the same and the huge sword slammed into the hollow, creating a huge dust cloud. The giant sword lifted as chad stepped up, "El Directo!" he shouted, a large blue beam of energy shot out of his right armored arm. It shot into the smoke where he assumed the hollow was. The four than backed up to access the damage. There was not a single building left in the area. It was just piles of rubble and dust filled air. They could just barely see the light of the barrier in the distance. The smoke around the hollow cleared and everyone could see that the hollow sported large gashes on his body and was panting heavily. But immediately it began to heal. Hitsugaya gritted his teeth in frustration.

"Instant regeneration? How are we supposed to capture him if he is always at full strength while we get worn down?" he said exasperated.

"Isn't it obvious?" commented komamura as he warily stared at hollow ichigo, "We have to use kido to restrain him, then we can contain him until an antidote is found." Hitsugaya nodded in understanding, but kenpachi frowned in disagreement and rounded on komamura,

"You know I'm don't like using kido! I would rather fight with my sword!" he complained. Hitsugaya sighed.

"Well then you and chad can be the distraction." he said. Chad nodded and kenpachi grinned,

"That I can do!" he said and charged towards hollow ichigo again. They exchanged blows again as chad fired blast after blast of his El Directo.

"I will help as well, I am very well practiced in kido." Said an exhausted and weary voice. Hitsugaya and komamura turned around,

"C-Captain Kuchiki!" Komamura said surprised.

"You need help, we need to get you to the 4th squad medic station quickly!" commented Hitsugaya with concern. Byakuya's eyes hardened

"I'm fine I can handle firing of a few kido spells. It is my duty to protect soul society and that is what i am going to do!" He said sternly.

Hitsugaya starred at Byakuya,

_"__This __is __about __his __Duty? __His __honor? __Wow, __he __has __lots __of __discipline, __doesn't __he __see __that __he __will __end __up __killing __himself?__"_ hitsugaya thought as he stared at byakuya's determined and solemn face. _"__No, __It__'__s __clear __he knows __that __he __probably __won't __survive __the __next __attack, __he __just __is __immensely __loyal __to __Soul __Society.__"_ he realized. Hitsugaya looked at byakuya with new respect. He was one rare captain. Hitsugaya smirked at him and nodded, and they stepped forward into the battle once more.

* * *

><p><em>Author note: I think I'm getting better at this long-chapter thing! :D<em>

_Please Review! Constructive criticism encouraged! _


	7. Chapter 7: Kido

_Authors note: Sorry for the slow updates, I've had some serious writers block! :P_

_Also there was exams and such in school, so I have not had much time to write..._

* * *

><p>Chapter 7: Kido<p>

The lieutenant of the 12th division, Nemu Kurotshuchi, entered her "Fathers" lab. There were shelves lined with vials, and jars with... odd things in them and all sorts of other science equipment, lining each wall except for the one facing the doorway. That wall had one long counter covered in vials and test tubes filled with suspicious liquid of every imaginable color.

"Pardon me Mayuri-sama, but Commander general Yamamoto requires a status update on how the antidote is coming along." she reported monotonously. Mayuri sighed impatiently and turned away from what he was working on to face nemu. He was holding a vial filled with a bubbling murky green liquid in his right hand, and an unidentifiable slimy..._thing_ in his left.

"I told you not to interrupt me when I am working you worthless filth! Do you want me to take you apart again?" He scolded. Nemu bowed,

"I apologize Mayuri-sama, however Commander General said it was urgent, Squadron One is not fairing well, he is considering deploying the Second Squadron to help deal with the Substitute Shinigami." she said calmly. Mayuri huffed and turned back towards his work and dropped the slimy object into the vial and watched as it fizzed and turned a blue-green color.

"Tell that impatient old man not to get his pants in a twist. I'm doing the best I can, yet this white substance is quite difficult to analyze and it is very difficult to create an antidote, I need more time." He said curtly. Nemu nodded and flash stepped away to relay the message. Mayuri used a dropper to place a drop of the white substance into the vial. The moment the substance came in contact with the blue-green liquid, the whole thing vaporized. Mayuri sighed. _"This may take longer than I thought."_ he realized as he reached for another vial.

* * *

><p>"Rraaaarrrrrggghhhhhh!" Kenpachi shouted in surprise as he skidded backwards over the rubble, his feet dragging and scraping the ground as he tried to slow his momentum and stay on his feet. He finally stopped himself by slamming his sword into the ground, the added resistance further slowing his speed. When he finally stopped, he looked up at the hollow that had back-handed him. He had skidded at least one hundred and fifty feet and created a trench in the ground from where his feet and sword were dragging. The hollow had caught him by surprise and was now walking towards him with a murderous glint in its eyes. Kenpachi cracked his neck and smirked.<p>

"That was quite a hit!" he laughed as he rubbed his jaw. "Ha! This is the most fun I've had in a long time!" He cackled, grinning like a madman, and loving every minute of the fight.

"Kenpachi get down!" Hitsugaya yelled as he and Byakuya flashed stepped behind the hollow. "Bakudō 30!" They said together, "Shitotsu Sensen!" Then three triangular shaped beams of energy shot out of there extended hands and slammed into the Hollow, sending it flying into the side of a crumbling wall. The beams of energy pinned its arms and legs to the wall. The hollow snarled and struggled against the restraints, the beams slowly starting to crack and crumble.

"This is one strong hollow! That was a double Bakudō incantation cast by two captain level Shinigami!" Kenpachi commented in bewilderment to an astonished Hitsugaya.

Hitsugaya nodded, "Yes, we will need to hit it with every thing we got." He said tersely. The incantation holding the hollow shattered as the hollow gave a final pull. It crouched down low to the ground and growled. Komamura's eyes widened as he noticed something.

"It's tiring! The constant kido spells and fighting must be wearing on him!" He quickly informed. Byakuya gasped as he noticed it too. The hollow was breathing harder. It had been hard to tell because of the normal strained sound of it breathing. "However, we are also getting tired, and we can't heal ourselves like Shiro, we need to finish this quickly or he will overpower us!" Byakuya reminded them urgently. Chad and the other captains started nodding in agreement until Chad caught on to what Byakuya said. He turned and looked at him questingly.

"...Shiro?" He asked. Byakuya sighed,

"Yes, that is what the hollow calls himself" he said, and sweatdroped. Everyone just starred at him. Komamura broke the silence as Kenpachi started snickering,

"That's... unusual for a hollow to have a name...let alone name itself..." He murmured disbelievingly. Everyone nodded there head.

Suddenly they heard a screech. They all whirled around to see that Shiro had recovered from there attack and was once again advancing towards the group. Chad and Kenpachi instantly reentered the fray and continuously bombarded Shiro with sword and energy attacks, allowing for the other three to come up with a plan. The three watched the fight, and as Chad was blasted backwards from a cero, Hitsugaya's eyes lit up as he thought of a new plan.

"Byakuya, Komamura, gather around I have an idea that might actually work!"

* * *

><p>Using Chad's and Kenpachi's distraction, the three slowly surrounded Shiro. They waited for the right moment to strike. Suddenly as Shiro blocked Chad's La Muerte, he left himself open.<p>

"NOW!" Shouted Byakuya," Bakudō 61: Rikujōkōrō!" He shouted, and six thin wide beams of energy were shot into Shiro's midsection, completely immobilizing him. Hitsugaya flash stepped into the sky behind Shiro and held his hand out,

"Bakudō 63: Sajō Sabaku!" He yelled, and strong chains made of Reitsu appeared and bound Shiro's limbs together. Shiro was now screeching and roaring so much that the group thought they would go deaf. Komamura stepped up in front of the hollow,

"Bakudō 99: Kin!" He shouted, and large spiritual fabric wrapped around Shiro, binding and constricting him even further. Then large, thick, and heavy iron shafts appeared and pinned the extremely durable fabric to the ground. Shiro howled as he was pulled to the ground. His shriek increasing in volume even more as Shiro struggled to get back on his feet, his tail viciously whipping back and fourth. His movements quickly becoming more desperate. But then, Shiro suddenly became deathly still, his cries turning into whimpering and moaning. The group moved forward, hoping to put Reitsu limiters on him.

There mistake was thinking that Shiro had given up.

His low moans once again turned into growls, which in turn became a long ear piercing wail. Black and red spiritual energy started forming around and beneath Shiro, pushing at his bonds. Shiro started rising, his massive and growing spiritual energy easily allowing him to rip the heavy iron shafts out of the ground. Everyone's eyes widened when the shafts flew into the air. Komamura turned and yelled at Hitsugaya who was behind him to the right. "Quick call in for back up NOW! I believe he's evolving again!" Hitsugaya swiped out his soul pager and contacted Yamamoto and the second squadron, while Kenpachi seemed frustrated.

"How is he evolving? We didn't even fatally injure him...so why is he evolving so fast?" He asked with an annoyed look on his face. Everyone just shook there head in bewilderment as Shiro's bonds started tearing from the pressure of his Reitsu. Hitsugaya finally got a reply, but all he could hear was static.

"Come on, come on..." he muttered and hit the device against his hand.

"..sssssss...co...sssss...ome in...ssss...ba...ssss...up on the...sssssssss...ay...ssss" was all Hitsugaya could hear over the interference Shiro's Reitsu was causing. He called out to the others over the sound of Shiro's struggling screams.

"Backup is on the way, I think, Shiro's Spiritual energy is interfering with my signal so it was hard to hear what they were saying." He informed the others. However, they were barely listening. They were too busy starring in horror at Shiro. The spiritual fabric had been completely incinerated by the Reitsu Shiro was emitting, it was swirling around him and pushing at the chains that still bound him. His tail was shrinking back into his back, and his mask grew two huge horns that pointed forward. The mask changed so that it had a more skull like look to it. Shiro's shoulder spikes receded and tuffs of red fur sprouted on his wrists, ankles, and around his neck. His hair grew even longer, but his hands and feet stayed the same. Tattoo like markings ran from his shoulders and chest, and ran into his hollow hole. Shiro now had a more humanoid look to his hollowfication. His sword that was lying a few feet away transformed into its Bankai form. Shiro rose to his feet and continued pulling on the chains that bound him and the six rods keeping him in place. In one final pull, and with his spiritual energy swirling around him in a small vortex, Shiro shattered the chains and the six rods. He howled and Zangetsu flew into his right hand. Even Kenpachi looked worried now. Komamura shook his head in amazement.

"He's a monster! I never knew Ichigo had something like_ that _inside him...How did he ever control such a powerful hollow?" Komamura asked no one in particular, a look of panic in his eyes. Chad just shook his head in shock, while the others were frozen in fright. Shiro's Reitsu was bearing down on them, the murderous intent extremely clear. He leaned forward, preparing to strike. The group tried to move, to lift there swords, anything! But the pressure and the fear it caused was overwhelming.

The most powerful Shinigami, the Court Guard Squad Captains were _Scared_.

* * *

><p>Ishida and the rest of the 2nd squadron, as well as all the lieutenants were assisting Commander General Yamamoto and Ukitake with the barrier. Orihime was helping Captain Unohana and the rest of squad four as they healed Renji and other unfortunate Shinigami who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.<p>

Ishida and Rukia were chatting nervously about the situation, and were trying to lighten the mood by talking about the hollows ironic choice of a name, when Yamamoto's soul pager went off. Every one herd the cry for backup from Hitsugaya, at about the same time they felt Shiro's spiritual pressure skyrocket. They all looked in the direction of the battle with wide eyes.

"Don't just stand there! Squadron two move out! Kyouraku, I would like for you to remain with Ukitake and myself, it would seem that we will need the barrier to remain as strong as possible to keep any further damage from Soul Society." Commanded Yamamoto. Kyouraku nodded as the second squadron flashed towards the battle.

* * *

><p>The first squadron was not doing well, even with all the Captains and Chad fighting at there best, Shiro just kept on effortlessly dogging and blocking everything they threw at him.<p>

Byakuya flashed behind Shiro and directed his petals to slash him across the back. Shiro just stood there with Zangetsu in his hand, not even attempting to block or doge. Byakuya's petal blades hit Shiro dead on, but when they cleared, everyone was shocked to see that Shiro did not have a scratch on him. He let out an inhuman roar of outrage. Before any of them could blink, Shiro had used sonido and appeared behind Byakuya, his back to him, arm and sword extended. Suddenly a large gash appeared across Byakuya's Chest from his left shoulder down to his right hip. His eyes widened, for he had not even seen Shiro, he had moved so fast. Byakuya collapsed and a pool of blood quickly pooled underneath him.

"Byakuya!" Yelled Komamura, and charged forward towards Shiro. The others just gaped at what just happened. Hitsugaya snapped out of it first.

"No Komamura, don't" he shouted in warning. But it was too late, Komamura raised his sword and the giant did the same. Shiro once again just stood there, waiting. Komamura roared in anger,

"You are going to PAY for that!" he yelled and swung his sword down, attempting to land a fatal blow on Shiro. The giant's sword swung down as well, but Shiro then raised Zangetsu and blocked the blow. The resulting collision led to a huge sonic boom, Shiro then used sonido to appear in front of the giant and formed a large red cero at the tip of his horns. He then proceeded to fire a point blank cero at the giants chest. Komamura howled in pain as the wound inflicted on the giant transferred to him, and collapsed. Hitsugaya grit his teeth as he watched his fellow captains fall. Kenpachi ran past Chad and Hitsugaya and charged at Shiro, he never liked using a move that the old man taught him, but Shiro was obviously too strong to not use the technique. As he neared Shiro he grasped his chipped sword with both hands, a move called Ryodan, that increases the power behind the blow times ten. No one has ever survives his blow when he uses this move. He ran right up to Shiro and swung down towards his left shoulder. His sword connected and a huge blast of energy and light exploded from the point of contact. When the smoke cleared, everyone was astonished at what they saw. At the last moment, Shiro had brought his hand up and _caught_ Kenpachi's blade. He was stunned,

"Wha? How…No one has _ever_ been able to-" he was cut of as Shiro slashed his sword across Kenpachi's waist, almost cutting him in half. He collapsed in a heap, blood pouring out of the wound.

"Che, never thought…I would be d-defeated by a human…turned hollow….. But hey at least I went down fighting…" he muttered before passing out. Chad and Hitsugaya starred in shock before glancing at each other, acknowledging that they probably wouldn't survive this, and then charged at Shiro, determined to go down fighting.

* * *

><p>Rukia, Ishida, and Soi-fon arrived at the battle scene, only just in time to see Hitsugaya in front of Shiro, struggling to catch his breath and block all of Shiro's sword strikes. They looked to the left and saw both Byakuya and Komamura lying in puddles of there own blood, to the right and a little ways behind Shiro they saw Chad lying face down with a deep gash across his back and Kenpachi in a bloodied heap on the ground. There attention was snapped back to Hitsugaya and Shiro as they heard a cry of pain. Shiro had stabbed Hitsugaya through the chest,<p>

"D-darn…it…" he spluttered before collapsing at Shiro's feet, his Bankai shattering. The second squadron starred in shock at the destruction and carnage Shiro had caused. Ishida started sweating as he remembered what Shiro did to Ulqliorra the first time he transformed into that monster. He knew that there was no way to stop Shiro without an antidote or killing him. Despite his dislike towards the Shinigami and constant comments he would say just to get on Ichigo's nerves and remind him that they were enemies, Ishida secretly hoped that Ichigo would be okay.

Rukia was reminded of how she had to kill her superior and friend Kaien because he was possessed by a hollow

"_Please hurry and find an antidote Captain Mayuri"_ she thought to herself _" I hoped we wouldn't have to kill Ichigo, but now…. It will be hard for us just to stay alive!" _she sighed. This was going to be difficult.

Soi-fon was only thinking of exterminating the threat, even if the hollow used to be the respected Substitute Shinigami. She never really liked him or his attitude anyway. Shiro turned towards the second squadron and let out a threatening growl.

"Ichigo…" Rukia said as the image of Kaien, impaled on the edge of her sword with those horrible hollow eyes…. She shook her head forbidding her self from thinking of it.

Ishida activated his Quincy bow and prepared to fire, while Soi-fon just stood in a fighting stance sword already drawn. Shiro growled and crouched, preparing to strike.

The final battle had begun.

* * *

><p><em>Authors note: I got tired of calling Shiro "The hollow", "Ichigo's hollow", "It", etc. So I just had everyone learn his name! ^-^ (just pretend it makes sense :p)<em>

_And sorry for any OOC'ness ^^'_


	8. Chapter 8: The Final Battle

_Authors note: Stupid writers block….. XP_

_Oh, and Merry Christmas everyone! :D_

Chapter 8: The Final Battle

"Ban…Kai!"

Rukia and Ishida were mostly on the offensive, merely attempting to dodge Shiro's attacks and lead him far away from there injured friends, when they herd Soi-fon activate her Bankai. They turned when they felt Captain Soi-fon's Reitsu increase and saw a huge golden missile launcher attached to her right arm with a face shield that covered half of her face.

"Whoa" said Ishida who had never seen her Bankai before.

* * *

><p>Soi-fon hated her Bankai, she thought it was offensive to her pride as a Covert Ops agent. It was to big and flashy for assassination, so she rarely ever used it. But this situation called for it. As she could not use her Shikai because Shiro was too fast for her to be able to stab him and his extremely strong Hierro prevented the blade from penetrating his skin whenever she did get a lucky hit in. So, even though she hated using her Bankai, she had no choice.<p>

"Everyone back away and GET DOWN!" she ordered. The others complied quickly and hit the deck. Soi-fon raised the missile launcher and used the face shield to aim at Shiro. She braced herself from the recoil and fired. The missile shot towards Shiro who lowered his head and once again charged a cero in front of his horns. He fired the cero at the missile, they collided but the cero only managed to slightly slow down the rocket. The rocket continued its course and hit Shiro point blank. The explosion that resulted was so huge, that it rivaled a nuclear bomb. Everything in the immediate area was completely leveled, Dirt and debris was flung into the air, and powerful wind from the shockwave of the blast threatened to blow everyone away.

Then there was silence, no sound but falling rubble. Rukia and Ishida looked up to see what damage Soi-fon managed to cause to Shiro.

"Surely, that killed him….I mean, that was one powerful explosion, it had to _at least _injured Shiro, if it didn't, then I don't know what will!" Ishida muttered to himself. He slowly rose to his feet as the dust settled, Rukia was a ways away, doing the same. Soi-fon was panting heavily, because launching a rocket cost a lot of energy. She starred into the dissipating smoke, hoping to see that she did some damage to Shiro. It would be even better for her if the hollow actually died, but she wasn't holding her breath. The smoke vanished and what they saw made all there hopes vanish. Shiro was practically unharmed. He was scorched here and there, and his hair was a little singed, but otherwise, he was fine! Soi-fon shook her head in utter disbelief, when suddenly, there was a hand through her stomach. Shiro had Sonidoed up to her and stabbed her with his sharp claws.

"Im-Impossible…" she gasped as blood flooded her lungs. Shiro yanked his hand out of her gut and Soi-fon fell to her knees clutching her stomach. She coughed up blood, groaned in pain and fell onto her side, unconscious. Rukia watched in horror, Shiro had beaten all the captains, and Chad. How could she and Ishida ever hope to stop him? Shiro turned towards her, but then Ishida appeared behind Shiro, bow drawn.

"Licht Regen!" he yelled and a huge volley of arrows shot out of his web shaped bow. The arrows soared towards Shiro, but he just flashed away out of range. But Ishida continued to shoot arrows at Shiro, trying to stall for time. But each time an arrow neared Shiro, he just dodged.

Rukia stabbed her sword into the ground four times around her and stabbed her sword forward, "Tsugi no mai, Hakuren!" yelled Rukia, and a large wave of ice erupted from her released sword and hit Shiro when he was distracted by Ishida's arrows. Her attack froze Shiro's legs and waist in Ice. He growled in annoyance and tore at the Ice with his claws, and sword. Ishida saw his chance and stabbed four Seele Schneider's in the ground in precise points around Shiro. He then stabbed a fifth one into the ground right in front of Shiro. He then took out a small silver tube with a Quincy's cross on it. He tossed it at the fifth Seele Schneider. Upon contact, the silver tube opened and a blue liquid splashed onto the sword. When the liquid touched the sword, it started glowing and all the Seele Schneider's started to glow, they formed a pentagon that centered around Shiro. A large explosion of blue energy formed in the middle and spread out until everything was consumed in the blast. It engulfed Shiro instantly along with everything else inside the pentagon. When the blast subsided, the two saw that Shiro was once again, barely harmed, only slightly singed in places. Rukia had expected this, however, and had prepared a counter attack,

"Some no mai, tsukishiro!" she spoke and spun her sword in a circular motion. A large white circle appeared under Shiro's feet, and instantly froze everything within the circle, including the air, creating a column of ice.

"You know that won't stop him." said Ishida. Rukia looked at him and nodded.

"I know, but at least it will give us time to think of a new plan." she replied. But at that moment, they heard a splintering sound. Both turned to see the pillar shatter and Shiro step out even more angry than before. "Shoot!" Rukia said as Shiro turned to her. Ishida and Rukia backed up and readied there weapons for a second strike. Shiro howled and flew towards the two, Ishida tried to slow him down with his arrows, but they just glanced of Shiro's skin. He stopped right in front of Ishida and before the latter could block, Shiro had punched him straight in the face, breaking his nose and knocking him out instantly. Ishida fell onto his back out cold, Shiro raised his blade, preparing to finish him off. But then Rukia ran up and parried his blade as it came down on Ishida. "I wont let you kill Ishida!" She shouted at Shiro. He turned to look at Rukia, and she gulped when she saw his menacing gold and black eyes. His hand shot out and grabbed Rukia around her neck. He hoisted her up to eye level, her feet way above the ground. Her eyes widened as her breath was cut short, she squirmed in his grip as Shiro attempted to crush the life out of her.

"I-Ich….igo….stop…this, I know… y-your in there…so...stop….pl..ease…" she whispered as she struggled to get air. Then just as she was loosing consciousness, he released her. Rukia fell to the ground coughing and gasping for air. She looked up in confusion, and saw Shiro just standing there. She slowly and shakily stood and looked at Shiro. He was simply starring into space, seemingly frozen.

"I-Ichigo?" she asked cautiously.

Then suddenly, the hollow "Shell" shattered, revealing Ichigo. Rukia gasped as Ichigo fell to the ground. "ICHIGO!" She yelled and went to his side. She looked him over.

He looked terrible, he was still deathly pale and was breathing shallowly. He looked like he had been dragged through a mine field. He was covered in burns and there were sword slashes all over him. It seemed as though there attacks _Had been_ doing damage, it was just that Shiro didn't show it and/or didn't care.

Just then Mayuri appeared, using flash step, with a syringe in hand. Inside there was a nasty, yellowish, pasty looking liquid. He stepped up to them, his gaze curious.

"How did he transform back?" he asked. Rukia shook her head in bewilderment,

"I have no idea!" she said, "He just stopped attacking and collapsed!" she recalled. Mayuri looked interested and bent down to examine Ichigo,

"Well, he still has that poison in him, so the only way he could have reverted back was if his inner hollow gave him control back." He mused, "This is very curious, there is no way his hollow...-sorry-... there is no way _Shiro_ would just give Ichigo back control." he concluded in a matter of fact tone. Rukia looked worriedly at Ichigo,

"So can you cure him?" she asked. Mayuri scoffed,

"Of course I can, I'm me!" He said with a grin and held up the syringe. "It took quite a while but I finally came up with the right antidote." he said. Rukia paled at the sight of the stuff inside the syringe.

"Do you really have to put _that_ inside him?" she asked with a disgusted look at the antidote. Mayuri glared at her,

"Do you want him to wake up or not? Because as long as that substance in inside him, he will stay in a coma until Shiro decides to take over again." he said tersely. Rukia paled even more at the thought of Shiro coming back, and nodded,

"Fine, just do it Captain." She said and watched as he bent over Ichigo and injected the antidote into Ichigo's arm. "How long until it takes effect and he wakes up?" Rukia asked the captain. Mayuri tilted his head thoughtfully for a moment.

"He should regain consciousness in a few hours or so." he informed. Rukia nodded her head in thanks, but her attention was drawn from Ichigo as Captain Commander Yamamoto, Kyouraku, Ukitake, and Unohana flash stepped to them.

"What happened?" Yamamoto asked in a commanding tone. Mayuri stood and faced them as Rukia stayed by Ichigo's side.

"I have administered the antidote to Ichigo Kurosaki, he will regain consciousness in a few hours." he reported. Yamamoto nodded and Captain Unohana stepped up,

"I will transport him to the Fourth division barracks immediately." She said. Rukia snapped her head towards the healing Captain,

"Oh yeah, the others they are all seriously wounded, they are a little ways back." she said urgently, and pointing behind her. Unohana nodded,

"Thank you for informing me Miss Rukia, I will contact all fourth division members and they will help them right away." she said kindly as she gently picked Ichigo up and set him over her shoulder. Rukia nodded and Unohana flashed away.

"If you will come with us Kuchiki Rukia, I would like your version of what happened." Said Commander Yamamoto.

"Yes sir" said Rukia, and they proceeded to the great hall.

* * *

><p>After Rukia recounted her version of what happened when her squad arrived, she was granted permission to visit Ichigo in the fourth squad relief station.<p>

She quickly arrived and was directed by one of the squad four medics, to Ichigo's room. As Rukia was walking down a busy hallway leading to his room, she passed several other rooms. She looked in them and saw Renji, her brother Byakuya, Kenpachi, and Hitsugaya, all heavily bandaged and unconscious, the others were probably in other parts of the station, in the same condition.

She finally reached Ichigo's room and stepped inside, it was a small room with white wall. There wasn't much inside, except for the bed in the middle of the room with a small chair on the right and a cabinet on the left wall. Rukia walked inside and sat on the chair next to the bed. She looked at Ichigo and saw that he looked much better, he was still pale, but it looked like most of his injuries had been healed, he only had a few bandages on his bare chest and forehead. He was breathing softly and had his right hand resting on his chest. Rukia smiled, she was happy that Ichigo was okay. But then her smile disappeared, she had so many unnerving questions, like who had sent Serpine, why hadn't he killed Ichigo when he had the chance, and why had Shiro given control back to Ichigo anyways? She sighed and rested her hand on Ichigo's. "Ichigo…what happened?"

* * *

><p><em>Authors note: WOW… that was the fastest chapter I have ever written! That only took one day to write! XD<em>

_I have too much time on my hands…_

_Please Review! ^-^_


	9. Chapter 9: Strawberry

_Authors note__: Thanks for all the reviews! It really makes my day! :D_

_Also Im really sorry about not updating sooner but this chapter need a lot of detail and is taking forever to write correctly. Also there's that annoying little thing called writers block…_

_**IMPORTANT:**_

_This Chapter will be all about Ichigo's experience/POV during Shiro's possession of his body._

Chapter 9: Strawberry

Ichigo awoke to a pounding headache, he groaned and put a hand to his head. The last thing he remembered was passing out as Hanatorou was healing him. He had felt that crushing pressure again before he passed out. Ichigo shifted where he lay, but he discovered the surface he was laying on was hard. He opened his eyes and sat up, he expected to see the inside of his hospital room, and be in a bed. But all he saw was a bunch of sideways skyscrapers. They were familiar,

"_Oh, I'm in my inner world!" _he thought to himself as he looked around. But something looked different…. The sky, it was white, not blue! And as he looked he noticed that the tallest building (or longest in this case) was oozing some sort of white goop. It was the building that was in the center of his inner world, the one Zangetsu was always on. His eyes widened as he took everything in, it was all wrong! What was going on?

"_Che, ya finally awake _King_?"_

Ichigo whirled around. He knew that distorted voice anywhere.

His inner hollow was standing a few feet away from him and had Zangetsu laying across his shoulder. He had a confident smirk on his face. Ichigo scowled,

"What do _YOU_ want?" he asked vehemently. The hollows smile only widened.

"_Awww, so rude! Is that any way to talk to the person who now holds all the power?" _He mocked. Ichigo only glared at his hollow,

"What are you talking about?" he asked cautiously. The hollow kept on smiling, but now it looked more sinister.

"_I'm talkin about this!" _He said simply, and snapped his fingers. All of a sudden, Large and heavy chains erupted from the building they were standing on and chained Ichigo to it, forming cuffs on his wrists, ankles, and neck. Ichigo gasped in surprise as the weight from the chains pulled him down onto his hands and knees.

"Wha-?" he said as he struggled against the weight. The hollow laughed,

"_I told ya! I'm in control now! Serpine's attack gave me control of EVERYTHING!" _He shouted with an ecstatic smile. Ichigo looked up at his hollow in shock,

"But the Vizards….my training…I-I subdued you!" He muttered, his brain completely unable to comprehend what was happening. The hollow smirked and walked towards Ichigo,

"_None of that matters now! I have complete control, and I'm not goin' to waist it talkin to ya!" _Then he stopped in front of Ichigo and frowned, _"I'm tired of serving a weak and stupid king who can't even use his own powers properly!" _With that he started vanishing, and only when he was barely visible anymore did Ichigo realize what was happening. His inner hollow was rising out of his inner world to take over his body.

"NO!" Ichigo yelled "Wait STOP!" he shouted in vain and tried to stand as his hollow completely vanished with a laugh.

Ichigo continued struggling against the chains, but they weighed a ton. After a moment of hopeless struggling he collapsed on his stomach, completely exhausted.

(Divider)

Ichigo had given up trying to stand and had settled with just sitting. Although, even that hurt his neck like crazy because of the heavy chain around it. After a while his neck got really sore.

At one point Ichigo had tried to see through his hollows eyes, to see what he was doing, but he couldn't, his hollow seemed to have blocked all his access to the outside world.

Ichigo was just sitting down with his hands wrapped around his knees and was resting his head in his arms. He was trying to think of a way to get back control, but it seemed impossible, Shiro had blocked any means of escape, heck, he could barely even move! Yet even with all his senses blocked he could tell that his hollow was fighting, it was an unexplainable feeling. They were sharing the same body so Ichigo could tell when his Reitsu was fluctuating, like in a fight. But even though he could tell his hollow was fighting, he couldn't figure out _who_ he was fighting . Ichigo gritted his teeth, he hated not knowing. He sighed and raised his head a little. How long had he been in here anyways? It felt like forever, but was probably only half an hour or so.

He was thinking so hard that he didn't even here the sound of footsteps approaching. He jumped when a hand touched his shoulder. (Well, considering the heavy chains on him, it was more like he twitched). Ichigo turned his head to see who was there. "Z-Zangetsu san?" he said surprised. There behind him was a tall middle aged man wearing a black coat, with dark sunglasses and unkempt hair. He looked at Ichigo sadly.

"Yes Ichigo, I am here" he said in a deep gruff voice. Ichigo looked at him wide eyed and turned so his whole body was facing Zangetsu.

"Do you know what the heck is goin on? I Subdued Shiro didn't I? How did he become so powerful? And what is that white stuff that is on your building anyway? And can you get me out of these chains?" he asked, hoping that Zangetsu would have at least some answers. Zangetsu sighed and starred at Ichigo without emotion.

"The attack with that Arrancar is what gave Shiro power and control. It also is the reason my building is covered in that white substance, it gives Shiro complete access and control of your body even though you subdued him." Zangetsu said, although he looked cross when he said the word "Subdued", as if it wasn't the word he would have used.

"And because of that, I have no power and therefore cannot cut or remove your chains." he said sadly.

Ichigo was now extremely concerned. He shifted in place, the chains starting to hurt his neck and wrists again,

"But how am I supposed to stop him and regain control?" Ichigo asked desperately, his movements causing his constraints to rattle against the building. But before Zangetsu could answer, Ichigo had another thought,

"Wait… did you just call him Shiro?" he asked, looking at Zangetsu questingly. He nodded and moved to sit next to Ichigo.

"Yes, that is what he calls himself, and I address him by that name. Actually there are a lot of things you don't know about Shiro." He said quietly as he sat by Ichigo with one leg pulled up to his chest with his arm around it, and the other stretched out in front of him. Ichigo looked at Zangetsu, completely intrigued. His hollow had named himself? He just thought that he was a mindless hollow that knew only the instinct for violence. But from the way Zangetsu was talking, it seemed that the hollow conversed with Zangetsu regularly and was more complex than the ordinary hollow. Was there more to his inner hollow than met the eye? Ichigo looked at the ground in thought.

"Shiro, huh? Makes sense… but what did you mean there are many things I don't know about Shiro, he's just another violent mindless hollow isn't he?" Ichigo asked Zangetsu. When he didn't receive an answer right away he looked back at Zangetsu, eyebrow raised. Zangetsu was hesitating and looked saddened,

"Im not the one you should ask." he said finally and looked at Ichigo meaningfully. Ichigo paled as he realized what Zangetsu was talking about. He sighed and ran his shackled hand through his hair.

"I don't think that he would be willing to have any sort of decent conversation with me, especially considering the fact that he is the one that put me in these constraints in the first place and has wanted to kill me since the day we met!" he said bitterly. Zangetsu gritted his teeth slightly,

"You'd be surprised" he said curtly. Ichigo was about to question his answer when dark grey clouds suddenly converged across the snow white sky. Ichigo looked up surprised, he instantly regretted it however because the chain around his neck was so thick and heavy, that it prevented Ichigo from such quick movement. He grimaced in pain and put a hand to his neck above the chain, It pressed against his skin and Ichigo knew that there would be serious bruising later. He pulled his hand away and saw it red with blood. The chains must have rubbed against his skin so much that it rubbed it raw. Ichigo gritted his teeth and decided to ignore it. There wasn't anything he could do about it anyways. He then looked at Zangetsu and gestured slowly to the sky,

"What's going on?" he asked. Zangetsu looked up and sighed.

"Its going to rain" he said simply.

(Divider)

Ichigo found out why Zangetsu hated the rain. Rain in his inner world was different than normal rain, it soaked and chilled you to the bone the second it hit you, no matter what you were wearing. It also held emotion, when the rain hit Ichigo, all he could feel was desperation and, even a hint of longing and sadness. For some reason, Ichigo felt like he was trapped, like he needed to escape and be free. That was what the rain made him feel. Ichigo looked over at Zangetsu and saw him curled up with his head in-between his knees with his hands over his head. In short, he looked absolutely miserable.

"Hey Zangetsu-san…." Ichigo said slowly, "What is with the rain, why is it like this?" He asked and looked up at the grey sky, squinting his eyes as the rain fell on his face. He looked back at Zangetsu as the latter raised his head. Zangetsu looked at Ichigo with a blank stare as rain dripped out of his flattened, rain soaked hair, and down his long nose. He sighed,

"It rains in here when ever the current controller of this body feels a particularly strong, negative, emotion. For example, sadness, depression, loneliness, longing, and defeat, are a few of the emotions that cause it to rain in here. The rain then shadows that emotion, so whatever the rain is making you feel now, is probably what Shiro is feeling." Zangetsu said, and instantly put his head back down, signaling that he was done talking. Ichigo looked down in thought as he received this new information. He could see blood running down the building along with the rain, coming from his wrists and ankles getting rubbed raw.

He then thought about the feelings the rain brought. Hollows didn't have real emotions, they could only feel hate, bitterness, loneliness, and the need to consume human souls, right? So how come Shiro was feeling all of this? From what he could tell, Shiro felt desperate, he wanted… freedom? No…that couldn't be right… but he was upset and frustrated about something, that Ichigo could tell. Did that mean that Shiro was more than an ordinary hollow? Could it be that Shiro had some humanity in him? The more Ichigo thought about it the more he realized that that was a very real possibility. Shiro didn't have a hollow hole as far as Ichigo knew, and he didn't have a mask in his inner world. Then Ichigo had a wild thought. What if Shiro was an arrancar! He had a Zanpacto, and he seemed smarter than the average hollow and used logic and reasoning. Was it possible?

He was interrupted from his train of thought when he suddenly realized something,

"Hey, Zangetsu-san…wasn't this place flooded the last time I was here?" Ichigo asked Zangetsu suddenly and looked at him questingly. Zangetsu sighed and looked at Ichigo from the corner of his eyes.

"Your inner world was flooded and the sky scrapers shrunk because of your despair and lose of hope. When you defeated Aizen using the Final Getsuga Tenshou, your inner world was incased in darkness because of your sadness at losing your powers." He paused and looked at Ichigo fully, he had a confused look on his face,

"Yeah, about that, how _did_ I get my powers back? You never really explained…" Ichigo asked confused as the rain continued to splatter on the buildings. Zangetsu sighed again and looked away before speaking again.

"Right before you used Mugetsu, I stored as much of your spiritual energy as I could deep inside your soul, along with Shiro and myself. Most of your spiritual was lost, but what I saved was still there. After all, your Shinigami powers could never completely disappear, they are a part of you, and that can never be taken away." He said matter of factly. He then paused for a bit before continuing, "For those few months you were without your powers, I was still within your soul, working on restoring your weak spiritual power. It took a while because how little there was to work with." Zangetsu concluded. He turned towards Ichigo once more. Ichigo had a slight bitter sweet smile on his face.

"Yeah, I was pretty surprised when you suddenly materialized yourself in front of me after months of not having spiritual energy, saying that my power had returned." he admitted with an amused grin. Ichigo then looked around as he continued. "So, basically, my inner world turned back to normal because my powers returned?" Ichigo concluded. Zangetsu nodded,

"With you renewed hope and happiness, the water receded and the buildings returned to there former glory, and the sun shone brighter than ever!" Zangetsu said with a nostalgic smile, gesturing with his arms to the surrounding buildings. Ichigo saw his face and his grin widened and he chuckled. But his smile vanished as he started thinking about what Zangetsu had said. He looked at his sword with a confused and slightly annoyed look on his face,

"Wait…why did you help Shiro? Why didn't you just let him disappear…? Then we probably wouldn't be in this mess right now!" he said tersely as he raised his arms to show Zangetsu the chains that were biting into his wrists. He looked at his bleeding wrists and grit his teeth in annoyance. He looked at Zangetsu and was taken aback at the almost angry and hurt look on his face. "Zangetsu-san wha-?"

"There is still much you still do not understand." Zangetsu grumbled. Ichigo starred at his sword in confusion. What was there to understand? Shiro was a hollow and hollows were evil. That was that…wasn't it? He sighed in frustration and ran a hand through his hair, why did Zangetsu have to be so vague? He was frustrated with all these questions that had no answers to. He looked over at Zangetsu again to see that he had once more buried his face in his arms. Ichigo sighed again (something he had been doing a lot of lately), the rain had only started moments ago, but it felt like it was lasting for hours. Ichigo starred up at the sky again in thought. Then, abruptly, the rain died down to a slight sprinkle as a large breeze came and rustled Ichigo's and Zangetsu's hair. Zangetsu lifted his head and starred past Ichigo and into the distance, as if expecting something. Ichigo tore his gaze away from the white sky and looked at Zangetsu. He followed his gaze and searched for what Zangetsu was looking for. He thought he saw something forming in the distance. The wind started picking up and blowing even harder than before, causing Ichigo to cover his face with his arm to protect it from the scathing wind. When the wind died down, he lowered his arm and looked again.

_He_ was coming

(Divider)

_Authors note: Wow, it was taking so long to finish this chapter, that I just cut it off here…sorry about that, but I thought you might want me to update sooner rather than wait a long time for a longer chapter…_

_Please Review! ^^_


	10. Chapter 10: Strawberry Part 2

_Authors note: The second part of the 9__th__ chapter is finished! ^^' (Finally…)_

_Thank you guys so much for the wonderful reviews! 3_

Chapter 10: Strawberry

Part 2

He saw Shiro walking towards them with a smug yet slightly annoyed look (if that makes sense). He walked up to them and spoke to Zangetsu,

"_Sorry Zangetsu-san, about the rain." _He said and pointed at the sky. Zangetsu nodded in acknowledgment. Shiro turned towards Ichigo and smirked. _"Hey Ichigo, I wouldn't struggle so much in those restraints, ya might get hurt."_ he mocked, gesturing at his bleeding wrists, ankles, and neck. Ichigo narrowed his eyes and glared at Shiro.

"Shut-up! Why are you here anyways?" He snapped. Shiro's smile widened.

"What? Can't I jus' visit my chained king fer fun?" he asked innocently. Ichigo just glared harder. Shiro rolled is eyes, "I was fightin' that pineapple red head Renji and the noble princess Byakuya, but then I got bored and let my instincts take over." he said in a casual tone. Ichigo smirked,

"Translation, they totally kicked your butt." he said. Shiro growled,

"_Did not! I just wasn't tryin' very hard." _he yelled as he crossed his arms in irritation. _"Anyways, they're probably dead now." _He said in thought, _"I'm still connected to the outside, so I know what is goin' on. They're losing."_ he said matter-of-factly. Ichigo paled, Shiro was right, if his instincts took over then that meant his body must have turned hollow, Byakuya and Renji didn't stand a chance! And Ichigo couldn't do anything to help them! Shiro saw the look on Ichigo's face and laughed, _"HA! Your pathetic! Why do you worry so much about other people when you can't even protect yourself! You can't even use you own power properly!"_ he said. Then he lowered his voice as he continued, _"Yer an idiot Ichigo…" _he muttered with a scowl. _"An someday that is gonna get ya killed."_

Ichigo looked away with a scowl, he was barely even paying attention to Shiro, as he thought again of how he could help the others. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, and heard his shackles clanking because of his movement. He glared up at Shiro ,

"Why do you hate me so much?" he asked in a tired tone.

Wrong question.

Shiro looked positively enraged. He stepped up to Ichigo and grabbed his Shihakusho and hoisted him into the air. Ichigo grimaced as the heavy chains pulled at his limbs and started pressing against his throat, cutting off his air. Shiro starred Ichigo straight in the eye, and Ichigo was surprised to see so much raw hate reflected in his eyes.

"_Oh yes Ichigo, WHY? Why do I hate the guy who has only seen me as a monster and had tried to subdue me since the day I was 'born'!" _he bit out scathingly and released his hold on Ichigo. He dropped to the ground. Hard. Ichigo was stunned by the sudden fall and couldn't come up with a response. Shiro continued as Ichigo gasped for breath, _"The only thing in your eyes when you look at me is horror and disgust! The only thing I hear in your thoughts is 'monster' and 'evil'!" _Shiro yelled at Ichigo with a bitter and slightly hurt look. Ichigo blinked in shock before replying with a scowl,

"Well all you have done is fight me and try to take control of my body! You are always threatening to hurt my friends and family! It's only natural to try and repress the thing that wants to hurt everything I love!" he shouted back. His hollow clenched his fists,

"_So now I'm a THING am I?" _he muttered. Ichigo was about to reply when his chains suddenly vanished. Shiro then proceeded to lift Ichigo up again and throw him into an adjacent building with so much force that Ichigo thought his back might have broken. Ichigo fell onto a building underneath him. He slowly got to his knees and then his feet. He looked up to see Shiro advancing, with his sword drawn.

"_You IDIOT!" _he shouted. And Ichigo could practically see the anger rolling off him. Thunder crashed in the sky as dark clouds rolled in. Shiro stomped up to Ichigo, and rose Zangetsu above his head. As he brought it down towards Ichigo's head, Ichigo willed his own Zangetsu into his hands, and blocked Shiro's blow. _"Do I have to explain EVERYTHING to you?"_ Shiro roared. Ichigo struggled to stay standing as the pressure on his sword increased. He grit his teeth in frustration.

"Well…it would…be…nice!" he said between clenched teeth as he was pushed to his knees. Shiro roared in frustration and withdrew his attack on Ichigo. He stood a few feet away and glowered at Ichigo as he struggled to get back on his feet. Ichigo took in deep breaths as he warily looked at Shiro. _'Since when did Shiro show so much emotion…?' _Ichigo thought in bewilderment as he looked into Shiro's blazing eyes. "Just tell me what I did wrong!" Ichigo yelled in annoyance. He flinched as Shiro's grip on Zangetsu tightened and Shiro glared at Ichigo with a murderous aura surrounding him.

"_Yer a stupid idiot Ichigo." _he snapped and set Zangetsu on his shoulder and turned his back to him. _"Ya worry an' whine about wanting to protect others, then you get beat up by a measly arrancar! Yer weak! An I'm sick an' tired of being the horse to a weak king! You don't even understand yer own power!" _he shouted. Ichigo scowled, so this was all about him being weak? And that was the third time he mentioned me not understanding my own power! Ichigo didn't understand, if he was weak, he would get stronger! And Shiro knew that!

So why did he seem so hurt and upset when he talked about Ichigo thinking of him as a monster? That was what he was! A hollow! He was so engrossed in his thoughts, that he almost didn't catch what Shiro said next because he spoke so softly.

"_But even if your weaker than me, I'm still the horse, just a lowly monster that lives in your soul. One that you just want to subdue, so why listen to me anyways?" _he said with remorse as his shoulders slumped. Ichigo starred at him in shock at the out of character behavior. Shiro turned his head and looked at Ichigo out of the corner of his eyes. _"Jus' what am I to ya 'King'?"_ he asked, his voice barely a whisper. Ichigo just starred at him wide eyed with surprise and confusion. Shiro continued when Ichigo didn't say anything,

"_Just 'it', 'that thing', 'monster', 'hollow'…?" _he tilted his head, all signs of anger gone, replaced by sadness. _"Am I really?" _he asked.

Ichigo frowned, his hollow wasn't making any sense! What was he talking about? He took a step forward,

"Stop talking in riddles, and just tell me what I'm doing wrong!" he urged.

Shiro whirled around, all signs of sadness gone. He literally shook with rage as he starred at Ichigo. Ichigo backed away expecting him to attack again, but he didn't, he just stood there and spoke again, _"You Moron!" _He shouted, _"You have to earn my powers!" _he was almost interrupted by Ichigo who looked indignant. _"Sure, Sure, ya got to use my powers when ya owned me in our fight in the vizards warehouse. But you can't even use 'em right!"_ He shouted.

He paused to let the information sink in, and then suddenly smiled his trademark smile, _"You never really earned the full use of my powers!" _he said and smirked. _"I was given the chance of freedom. To be FREE from a king who doesn't even deserve his title, an' I took it. I'm gonna show everyone what true power is, I refuse to serve ya, when I have a real chance to be free!"_ he said with determination. Ichigo just starred in shock. Mostly at the random mood swings. His hollow glared at him again, _"I hate it in here, an' I hate. YOU!" _he said slowly, his voice filled with malice. He then abruptly turned on his heels and started walking off.

"W-wait!" Ichigo shouted. He was confused, why was his hollow acting this way, he was being way too emotional for a being without at heart, and Ichigo didn't understand fully what his hollow was talking about. He saw Shiro turn back towards him slowly eyes downcast.

"_Must subdue, 'monster', 'It', 'that thing', 'my hollow', and a pain in the butt…" _he recited, getting louder and angrier with each word. He looked up at Ichigo trembling with rage. _"Ya know Im only the monster I am now because you made me it. If you recall, when we first met I called you Aibou." _he paused, _"You don't DESERVE to be king." _he said in a bitterly scathing tone. Yet Ichigo saw the rejection in his anger filled eyes. Shiro then turned again, and walked off.

(Divider)

Ichigo watched as his hollow walked off and thought about what he said. Shiro was right, Ichigo never gave him a chance, he just assumed that since Shiro was a hollow, he was automatically evil. But he realized that his hollow never really threatened him when they first met, he had called him partner…he had helped him understand Zangetsu. And how hid Ichigo pay him back? He just shoved him into the back of his mind and attempted to subdue him. Ichigo stood there and buried his face in his hands. He was so stupid. He had never noticed the hand of friendship and trust that the hollow had offered when they first met. Shiro was right, Ichigo didn't deserve his power because there was no trust between them. He then realized that Shiro's power worked the same as Zangetsu's! Why didn't he realize it before? In order to achieve Shikai, the sword and the wielder had to communicate and trust each other. To achieve Bankai, the wielder had to be able to materialize and defeat his sword.

Ichigo groaned. He never even tried to form a bond between him and his hollow, Ichigo just thought that he needed to be subdued. He had skipped the 'Shikai' stage and went right into Bankai stage. Even then all he did was defeat and subdue his inner hollow.

He had never even known that his hollow had a name! He was never able to use Zangetsu properly until he learned his name! No wonder Shiro said that he didn't understand his own power!

Ichigo shook his head, Shiro was right, he did not deserve to be king after what he did to him. No wonder Shiro hated it here, no wonder Shiro hated him. He was a terrible king who knew nothing about his own power, and mistreated his subjects. Ichigo fell to his knees and the sky opened with a crash of thunder and rain started pouring out. It slammed on Ichigo's back, but he didn't do anything, he just sat there and felt all his emotions. He sat there because deep down he knew he deserved it, he deserved the pain the rain brought. And he felt like he owed Zangetsu and Shiro for making them suffer through all his pain. He looked up through his rain soaked hair as he felt Zangetsu approaching, but didn't move. Zangetsu came and sat next to Ichigo. He was grateful for the company, but felt remorse for putting Zangetsu through this. He sighed, "Im sorry for everything Zangetsu-san, I've been so stupid lately, can you ever forgive me for what I have done to you guys?" he asked. He wouldn't blame Zangetsu if he hated him…

"I forgive you Ichigo." His sword said simply and quietly. Ichigo looked up at him in shock, "Y-you do? You aren't mad? Don't you hate me?" Ichigo asked incredulous. After all that he had put Zangetsu through…

His sword chuckled slightly, "You have grown Ichigo." he said softly, "You have realized your mistakes and regret them fully. The only thing you can do now is try to fix them." Zangetsu said and put a hand on Ichigo's shoulder. He smiled, and Ichigo smiled back. He would fix things. No matter what it took, he would fix things. He made that promise to himself.

(Divider)

_Authors note: Ok next chapter should wrap up what is going on in Ichigo's inner world!_

_**IMPORTANT: **__I didn't know how to put this in there, but Shiro's second change into his full hollow form, happened soon after Shiro walked away from Ichigo, and right before it started pouring. Shiro had felt himself get restrained and was scared that he would loose his new freedom, and because of that, he evolved again._

_Just to clear things up __J_


	11. Chapter 11: Strawberry part 3

_Authors note: __Whew! For some reason this chapter was just so hard to write! I tried to start it almost ten different ways, but they just didn't flow right…and I got lazy and sort of lost my motivation for a little while. SO I'M SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG, DON'T KILL ME! D:_

_*Is tackled by angry fan-peoples*_

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><p>Chapter 11: Strawberry<p>

Part 3

Ichigo finally caught up to Shiro after what felt like hours of following his Reitsu. He only caught up to Shiro, however, because the latter stopped running. Shiro was standing at the edge of one of the buildings, his back to Ichigo. He was just starring at the sky in the distance, arms down by his side. Ichigo landed on the building and took a step towards Shiro.

"Oi…uh… I um…" he said tentatively, and shifted in place nervously. He didn't know exactly what to say without possibly offending Shiro again. He seemed to be very sensitive right now and Ichigo just wanted him to listen to what he had to say. He was thinking of how to apologize the whole time he was chasing Shiro. He didn't care if Shiro hated him, Ichigo just wanted him to know how sorry he was. However, part of him still did not understand, and that frustrated him. He finally decided to just come out and say it, "I…uh…I just wanted to say that…that I'm sorry." he mumbled and scratched the back of his head, a subconscious thing he did when he was nervous. Shiro turned his head to the side, his one visible eye widened in slight shock before turning into a hateful glare and turned his head away from Ichigo again. Ichigo took a deep breath, this wasn't going to be easy. He stiffened in surprise when a hand was placed gently on his shoulder. He turned his head to see Zangetsu behind him. Zangetsu offered him an encouraging nod. Ichigo smiled softly, but it quickly faded. He turned to Shiro again. "Look…I hate to admit it, but…" he sighed, "Your right, and I'm sorry." he muttered, his eyes downcast. Shiro stiffened and Ichigo noticed his fists clenching and unclenching. He continued, "I was stupid and…and I never listened to you, or tried to understand you. I never saw the effort you made to form a partnership…and maybe even a friendship." He paused and thought about what to say next, he needed to choose his words carefully. "I was blind, I never thought…never realized…that a hollow could be anything other than evil…" he whispered guiltily.

"_No," _he thought as he saw Shiro's fists start trembling. _"I was way off, not all hollows are evil, not by a long shot. They can express feelings of comradeship and even friendship, even if it is only at a small level. A perfect example is Nell, she was sweet and kind, even in her adult form! No, I was way off." _

He quickly continued, trying to say everything he needed to say before Shiro suddenly decided to leave again. "You were right, I've been a stubborn idiot, who can't even pay attention to the beings that live in his own soul…I've been a horrible king. I've mistreated you guys" he said, including Zangetsu now, "I've abused your power," he hesitated and looked at Shiro again, "And I still can't say I completely understand. Cause' I don't. I don't get your feelings or why…I don't get your reasons…but," he hesitated again, not sure how Shiro would react, "Shiro…I don't expect you to forgive me, and I completely understand if you hate me for the rest of your life. But I just wanted to let you know that I'm willing to listen this time, if your willing to give me another chance…" he said tentatively as he looked at the back of Shiro's head. . The only reaction Shiro made, was that his head lowered, and turned slightly towards Ichigo at the sound of his name. The latter decided to push his luck as he saw that Shiro was not leaving. He chuckled weakly, "You know, Shiro does kind of fit you." he said, joking nervously. "But you know, I think its missing something…" he said and paused, looking at Shiro for a reaction. When he didn't get one, he sighed and continued, "I was thinking, that since you're a part of me, and Zangetsu is a part of me, and that you guys share the same form and are therefore technically related…." he trailed off, and looked at Zangetsu, as he remembered the conversation they had earlier.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++FLASHBACK+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Zangetsu san….Shiro's name isn't his real name is it?" Ichigo asked as they searched for Shiro's Reitsu. He was thinking about it, and It didn't seem…right, or maybe it just wasn't complete. It felt like something was missing.

Zangetsu nodded his head slowly and answered

"I was wondering if you would catch that." He said softly. "You're right, the only one who can give your hollow his name is you Ichigo." He said. Ichigo's eyes widened in surprise.

"But wait old man! You knew you your name, so shouldn't Shiro know his own name?" Ichigo asked in confusion. He looked at Zangetsu with a questioning glance. He watched as the edges on his sword's mouth twitched upwards into a slight smile.

"Shiro was born into your soul differently than I was, I believe that you are the only one who knows Shiro's true name." He said.

Ichigo tilted his head and pondered that thought. So how did he figure out Shiro's true name? He didn't know, so why did Zangetsu say he knew…His brow wrinkled in thought. How did he hear Zangetsu's name? He thought hard.

Oh yeah…he only heard Zangetsu's name when he really listened.

Ichigo's head shot up in surprise as he realized something. He had to _listen_. Ichigo glanced a Zangetsu, and the latter gave him an approving nod. Ichigo decided it was worth a shot. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes and concentrated, he tried to really listen.

At first, nothing happened, but then, so softly that he almost missed it, he heard something. It was a small whisper, as soft as the breeze, blowing around him. Ichigo struggled to hear the voice, he strained his ears to listen even harder. Almost….

Then suddenly it hit him, as if someone just yelled the name in his ear at the top of there voice. All of a sudden, the name came to him and felt as natural as if Ichigo had known it all his life! It just felt so _right_…so simple that Ichigo didn't know how he didn't think of it before! It fit perfectly! Now he just hoped that his hollow would like it too.

++++++++++++++++++++++++END FLASHBACK+++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ichigo starred at his hollow carefully, "I've given you a name, your true name." He said slowly. Shiro turned his head again, a mistrusting and cautious, yet surprised glare on his face, as he starred at Ichigo. Ichigo starred right back, calm determination in his gaze, although, that was not how he really felt. He was extremely nervous on the inside. He really hoped that Shiro would accept his new name. He took a deep breath,

"Shirogetsu, that's your name.." he said finally, and bit his lip as he waited for a reaction.

The newly dubbed Shirogetsu turned completely around, Shock plastered on his face. He starred at Ichigo with wide eyes as his mouth opened and closed repeatedly. As if he was struggling to speak.

Ichigo starred Shirogetsu in the eyes nervously. Would he accept the name? He rubbed the back of his head with his hand. "I really am sorry, for everything." He said truthfully. He looked away. "Maybe, we can try to be partners… if your willing to forgive me." he mumbled apprehensively.

Shirogetsu's look of shock changed to weary suspicion. Ichigo continued.

"I don't expect you to forgive me anytime soon, but I thought that I should still give you your name, after everything I've done." he said and starred at the suddenly extremely interesting floor. Minutes passed slowly, and when Shirogetsu didn't reply, but just continued to glare distrustfully, Ichigo sighed. He turned away with his eyes downcast. "Ok, I see, I'll back off." he said dejectedly and walked off. _Well I can't say I didn't try, but he could of at least replied, or said _something_, instead of ignoring me. _He thought bitterly.

He stopped after walking a few feet and turned his head back towards Shirogetsu, and looked at him out of the corner of his eyes. "You…uh…" he sighed, his eyes having a defeated look to them. "You can have control…" He whispered solemnly. "I…I know I don't deserve to be 'king' … but…just…" his voice cracked, "Just please don't hurt my friends or family.." He choked out.

Thunder rumbled in the distance.

He turned and once again walked away. If part of his own soul and power, hated him, than it was obvious that he was at fault, and did not deserve that power. Shirogetsu could have control and do what ever he wanted, Ichigo didn't care. He just wanted his friends and family to be safe.

Then suddenly Ichigo heard _his_ voice. Just one word, that made his mind go blank from shock, and disbelief.

"_Wait…"_

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><p><em>Authors note: Man, this chapter was so hard to write! And I don't even know why! D:<em>

_Ugh! And It didn't even turn out exactly how I wanted it to…and its short *sob*_

_Anywhoo, Sorry about the long update times, I hope that this stupid sickness called writers block will go away so I can get more chapters out faster…_

_PLEEEEEEEEESSSSEEEEEEE REVIEW! And give advice and your opinion on my story so I can improve my writing skilz! It gives me motivation to write faster if I get lots of updates! ;D_

_See ya guys later! 3_


	12. Chapter 12: Strawberry Part 4

_Authors note: Ok just wanted to let ya'll know, that the name Shirogetsu was not originally my idea! I got it from an amazing fan fiction (I think it was called echough remix) that someone else wrote. They came up with the name and I just wanted to give them credit, so don't sue me!_

* * *

><p>Chapter 12: Strawberry Part 4<p>

(Im just running out of ideas for chapter names at this point -.-')

Ichigo whirled around in surprise, did Shirogetsu just ask him to wait? Despite himself, he felt a small spark of hope form in his chest. Would Shirogetsu forgive him? He could hope…but the logical part of him had to ask, why? He just openly gave Shirogetsu control of his body! That was what Shirogetsu had wanted. Right?

He looked at Shiro questingly,

"…Yeah?" he asked tentatively. Shirogetsu turned to face Ichigo. He crossed his arms and scoffed

"_Che, how can I be mad at a guy who looks as pathetic and miserable as you do." _he muttered with a shake of his head.

Ichigo blinked, his mind slowly processing what he said, but then rolled his eyes with small scowl. Of course Shirogetsu would say that and be able to insult him at the same time. Shirogetsu tilted his head and starred at Ichigo for a few seconds with a calculating and cautious look. He then sighed dramatically and turned away, waving his hand into the air. _"Eh, I don' want control, ya can keep it." _he said simply and started walking away.

Ichigo gaped and took a step forward, "R-Really?" he stuttered with disbelief. "But you always said-"

"_I know what I said!" _Shirogetsu interrupted nonchalantly, _"But if I were to stay in control, then Soul Society would never leave me alone (not like they could beat me mind you)…And I wouldn't be able to enjoy my freedom at all!" _he said with a shrug in a bored tone.

He turned and looked at Ichigo, his eyes glinting with mischief, _"But cha' better let me out a few times, like in a fight! It gets so borin' in 'ere!" _he whined with a pout.

Ichigo hesitated, he didn't want to let Shirogetsu in control. Ever. But…if he wanted Shirogetsu to trust him, then he would have to trust Shirogetsu in return. The thought unnerved him. How would Soul Society react to Ichigo allying with the same hollow that just decimated their best fighters? Ichigo fought the sudden urge to laugh.

_They would not react well,_ he thought with a smirk.

He made up his mind and looked at Shirogetsu as he bit his lip nervously,

"…Fine" he said tersely, "But don't make me regret it.." he muttered to himself.

He saw Shirogetsu's eyes widen in shock. He had not expected Ichigo to agree at all, let alone agree so fast! Maybe this could work after all…

"So, does this mean that your willing to be partners?" Ichigo asked slowly. Shirogetsu narrowed his eyes slightly and frowned. _"Tha's all I've ever wanted kingy" _he said quietly _"…Well, that and freedom" _he added with a small smirk. He tilted his head and stared at Ichigo with serious expression before saying, _"I wont just give ya control of my power, ya gonna have ta earn it."_ he said. Ichigo nodded,

"Of course, after what I've done to you and Zangetsu, I wouldn't imagine it any other way." He stated solemnly. Shirogetsu continued to stare at Ichigo with an odd look on his face.

"_I have conditions." _he said slowly, testing Ichigo.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow, and cocked his head to the right slightly,

"Oh, and what would they be?" he asked hesitantly. Shirogetsu smiled, It was still bordering on the insane, but it was a real smile nonetheless.

"_Ok, first, ya gotta let me have control when I ask for it." _he said with his pointer finger in the air. Ichigo nodded slowly, "unless it could endanger my friends or family, then maybe that could be arranged…" he said reluctantly. He silently and repeatedly kept reminding himself that in order to gain his trust, he would have to learn to work together with him. Shirogetsu held up a second finger.

"_Secondly, get stronger, cause I still refuse to work with a king who is weaker than me. And lastly, make it stop raining in here DARN IT!"_ he yelled in annoyance. Ichigo blinked in surprise.

"Of course I'll get stronger!" he yelled with determination. He spoke again, but with in a softer tone, "And I'll do everything possible to make the rain stop." he promised. Shirogetsu nodded.

"_Well then its settled-"_

"Wait." interrupted Ichigo. Shirogetsu raised his eyebrow and smirked.

"_What is it now kingy? Im a busy hollow ya know." _He said in a mocking tone. Ichigo rolled his eyes in exasperation and scowled.

"Train me." he said seriously. Shirogetsu seemed taken aback.

"_Wha?" _he asked in disbelief _"Why on earth would I train _you_?" _he asked apprehensively. Ichigo just shrugged,

"Well, You want me to get stronger right? So train me yourself! You could help me understand how to use and master our hollow powers properly!" He insisted. Shirogetsu seemed to hesitate. Ichigo had a point, if he trained with him, then Ichigo would defiantly get stronger, and then maybe Ichigo would trust him and let him have control more. The thought exited Shirogetsu, however, he didn't show it. He just waved his hand in a noncommittal gesture.

"_Eh, whatever, I'll do it." _He said simply while shrugging. He then gave a mischievous smirk, _"But only 'cause it means I'll get to beat ya up every day!" _he said with a crazy grin.

Ichigo rolled his eyes, but then smirked.

"Deal" he said with a nod. Shirogetsu then turned and walked to the edge of the building they were on,

"_Ya know, ya better get back out there, I did beat up yer friends pretty good after all."_ He said indifferently. _"Oh an' don't worry about tha' white stuff, it disappeared a little while ago (Not that I need it to take control of you body anyway)"_ he commented which made Ichigo nervous. _"It was probably the work of tha' creepy scientist freak. What was his name again? Mura? Mayo? Mayuri? Yeah that's it. Anyways,"_ Shirogetsu said and turned back towards Ichigo_, "Get back out there so I don't have to see your ugly face anymore!" _he mocked with a smirk. Ichigo was taken aback.

"But you look just like me!" he commented incredulously. Shirogetsu scowled,

"_Just get out before I change my mind and decide to beat you up again!" _he snapped. Ichigo just rose his eyebrow with a humored look of his face. He laughed, but rose up out of his inner world anyways.

* * *

><p>Shirogetsu stood staring into space, deep in thought when Zangetsu walked up beside him <strong>(AN: for those who are confused, he was standing on the sidelines watching the whole time : )**. They both stood there in comfortable silence for a few moments before the sword spoke.

"Im proud of you Shirogetsu." He said fondly. Shirogetsu rolled his eyes and shrugged, _"Don't ya be getting all soft on me now Zanny." _He said. Zangetsu ignored him and continued,

"Don't try to hide it, I know your exited that Ichigo has finally as you would say 'grown a brain' " he said with a small chuckle. Shirogetsu scoffed,

"_Yeah right! Im exited cause I get to beat up King in trainin' every day!" _He boasted with a crazed smile. Zangetsu sighed and shook his head before turning back to the horizon.

It was going to take a lot of work and effort on both parts for this to work…

* * *

><p><em>Authors note: Yep. I suck I know, ANOTHER short chapter! Ugh! Sorry I just had to stop it there though, cause the next one goes back to what is happening in the outside world. So yeah… *sigh*<em>

_I will be fun to write the interaction between Shirogetsu and Ichigo though... *thinks of possible scenarios and laughs at the possibilities*_

_Im really trying to update fast, but school is really annoying and I have SO MUCH homework all the time! Ugh!_

_Ok enough ranting… The usual, PLEASE REVIEW! IT GIVES ME LIFE AND DRIVES ME TO WRITE FASTER OUT OF GUILT FOR NOT UPDSTING SOONER! XD_

_(no seriously…)_


	13. Chapter 13: Back to Reality

_Authors note: __Hello peoples! Im back! (took me long enough D:)_

_Finally we move back to what is happening in soul society! :D_

_And a big thank you to everyone that reviewed(and everyone who will hopefully will review in the future)! It makes me so happy! 8D_

_(Im so sorry I haven't updated! I wont even try to give an excuse -.-'_

_I just feel like a horrible person, makin' you guys wait so long…)_

_Assyla: lol, yer so slow!_

_Me: Noooooo! Im not! *in denial* Im sorry! D:_

_Assyla: Yes you are, if you would just let me write the story it would go faster~!_

_Me: No! The last time I let you out, stuff blew up!_

_Assyla: *chuckles evilly*_

_Me: *sigh* having an inner hollow is so annoying!_

_Assyla: OI! You wanna fight or somthin?_

_Me: *sweat drops and chuckles nervously* uhhhh no Ill pass…._

_So anyways…..Sorry Im so sloooooooooowwwwwwwww!_

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><p>Chapter 13: Back to Reality<p>

Rukia was sitting in Ichigo's hospital room, worrying and thinking of all the worst case scenarios. What if Soul Society decided to execute Ichigo because of his inner hollow? What if he never woke up? She bit her lip in worry. Why did this have to happen? What was that Arrancar's role in all of this? Did he just want Ichigo's hollow to destroy Seireitei so we would become weak in our defenses? Are the hollows forming another army? If so, then who is there new leader? Or was there another purpose? Who was that arrancar working for?

Rukia sighed and rubbed her temples, all of this thinking was giving her a headache. It was immediately forgotten however, when she heard a soft groan coming from Ichigo. She sat up quickly and leaned over Ichigo. She spoke softly.

"Ichigo?"

His face scrunched up as he let out another moan. She gripped his hand tightly as his eyes fluttered open, and he sucked in a deep breath. "Ichigo!" Rukia spoke excitedly. He squinted up at her, his eyesight still blurry and having trouble focusing.

"R-Ruki-a?"

He asked with a hoarse voice, then winced in pain and groaned again because it hurt his throat to speak. Rukia nodded, and gave him a small reassuring smile.

"Yeah Ichigo, its me"

She said with her voice filled with relief. He nodded and looked at her with an exhausted, yet serious and concerned look.

"Are you…Are you ok?"

he asked, frowning at her worriedly. Rukia rolled her eyes and nodded.

"Im fine you Baka!"

She yelled, but softened her voice when she saw Ichigo wince from the noise. "Its you whose all beat up!" She scolded softly. His eyes softened and he gave her a tired smirk,

"Yeah, I feel like I got hit by and eighteen wheeler going 600 mile per hour."

He said with a shaky and hoarse laugh. Rukia shook her head and smiled.

"Yeah, well sorry about that, but you were kinda destroying Seireitei so…" she chuckled. Ichigo sweat dropped. "Yeah, uh, sorry…" he said. He didn't know what else to say. _"How on earth am I going to tell them that Im working together with Shirogetsu now? Soul Society would not be pleased."_

**~There never pleased 'bout anything Aibou~**

Ichigo ignored the voice as he thought further. _"What if they tried to get rid of Shirogetsu?" _Ichigo started panicking_, "how is this going to work?"_

**~Awwwww! Im flattered that ya care 'bout me so much! Ha don' worry! If they attack us we'll take 'em easy!~**

Ichigo jumped in surprise. _"Stop reading my thoughts!" _he scolded mentally.

**~But it's Truuuuuuuuuue~ !~ **Shirogetsu sang.

Ichigo did a mental face palm.

He looked up at Rukia

"So, how is everyone else doing?" He asked, changing the subject. Rukia, obviously ignorant of the mental conversation, replied.

"They are in pretty bad shape, most are still unconscious, but Unohana Taicho said that they should all pull through." She said with a sad smile. Ichigo sighed in relief,

"So there are no casualties?" he asked in a hopeful tone. She shook her head.

"That's right, amazingly." She said in relief. Ichigo sighed and then proceeded to attempt to get up. Rukia's eyes widened and she unceremoniously pushed Ichigo back down. "You Idiot!" She said furiously. "Stop trying to get up! Your still hurt, and you can barely speak!"

She then held Ichigo down as he scowled at her and struggled weakly, with no result.

"Im fine Rukia!" he snapped before going into a small coughing fit. "Let go!" he yelled hoarsely. "Gerofmmmphhhfffff!" He was cut off as Rukia pressed her hand over his mouth.

"Shut up! You have been comatose for the past 4 hours (not counting the time before you lost control)! Your body is still recovering, and with all your flailing about you will open your wounds again!" She snapped with a concerned look in her eyes. Ichigo just glared at her from behind his hand.

"!" He yelled incoherently. Rukia shook her head and removed her hand.

"What?" She asked in confusion. Ichigo took in a deep breath and repeated.

"First, I couldn't BREATH you midget! And second, I just want to sit up!" he said with an irritated huff. Rukia shook her head in exasperation.

"You really shouldn't even be sitting up." She warned, ignoring the midget comment. Ichigo rolled his eyes,

"But your going to help me anyways right?" he asked, eyebrow raised in question. Rukia just huffed in exasperation and proceeded to help him sit up. Ichigo gave a victorious smirk, which Rukia just rolled her eyes at.

"Stupid strawberry…" she mumbled.

"What was that?" Ichigo asked. Rukia smiled.

"Nothing~" she said in an innocent voice. Ichigo rolled his eyes.

"Yeah right" he mumbled quietly, and laid his head back on the head board of his hospital bed. He sighed in exhaustion and closed his eyes.

They stayed like that for a few moments. Ichigo resting, and Rukia sitting next to him in silence. Rukia was the first to break the silence.

"Um, w-what happened Ichigo?" She asked nervously as Ichigo raised his head to look at her. "What happened while your inner hollow took over?" She asked tentatively. Ichigo sighed and ran his hand through his messy orange hair. He wanted to tell her his name was Shirogetsu, but that would probably raise a few questions. "I mean, it was subdued right? But if I remember correctly, you were having trouble with it before Serpine attacked us." Rukia continued, with a nervous and perplexed look on her face.

"Uh…" how was he going to explain that it was all a big misunderstanding? Should he tell her the truth? Would she be upset that he was working with a hollow?

He sighed, "Um, well I don't really know how he started taking over before Serpine's influence, but I think it had something to do with Ulqliorra…" he didn't catch how Rukia stiffened at this comment, and continued. "I fought him in my inner world…" that wasn't exactly a lie now was it? "And I guess I won…" he finished lamely. " I mean I had enough time to gain control until Mayuri came…" he said, a bad feeling forming in the pit of his stomach for lying to Rukia. He was purposefully being vague, and Ichigo had a feeling that Rukia would catch onto it. Rukia looked at him with a confused look as she processed the information.

"But Mayuri said that you could not gain control unless your hollow gave you control." she said with an eyebrow raised in suspicion. Ichigo gulped. _"Crap" _he thought, and tried to quickly think of something.

"I…uh…well…after I beat him, he gave me control cause I won…" he said nervously.

**~Che hardly…quite the opposite actually…~**

Shirogetsu said smugly.

"_Shut up you!" _Ichigo snapped mentally.

Rukia looked downwards in thought. She didn't entirely believe him, but gave him the benefit of the doubt. _"fine" _she thought. _"if he doesn't want to tell me the whole truth now, then I'll wait until he feels he can trust me." _she thought somewhat bitterly. She wondered why he couldn't trust her. However, just as he finished her thought, Unohana Taicho came into the room. She noticed Ichigo sitting up and conscious, and smiled warmly.

"Ah, Kurosaki-san, your finally awake." she commented in a calm voice. Ichigo looked up at her and nodded as he started sweating. She was the scariest Captain, even without trying to be scary. Unohana walked over to him and placed her hands over his bandaged chest, and a soft glow emitted from them. "Now, how do you feel?" she asked. Ichigo rubbed his shoulder.

"I feel like several Captains went Bankai on me all at once." he said hoarsely with a wince. Rukia rolled her eyes at him and Unohana chuckled,

"Well, that's sounds about right." She said with a warm smile. She removed her hands, "Don't, worry you should be fine, just rest here for the next few days to allow your wounds to heal properly. Orihime should be here soon, she requested that I inform her when you awoke, so she should be able to heal you faster." she finished. She stood and turned to leave, but then paused and turned back to the young Substitute Shinigami. "And Kurosaki-san" she paused momentarily. "Some of the captains will probably be coming in to interrogate you some time soon." She warned. Ichigo nodded his head in thanks and Unohana left. As soon as she exited, however, a certain spiky red haired bangage covered Shinigami entered.

"Hey Rukia I-!" Renji stopped mid-sentence when he noticed Ichigo awake and staring at him in surprise at his sudden outburst. Renji's eyebrows rose in surprise, "Ichigo your finally awake?" he said in shock. Ichigo rolled his eyes, he was sorely tempted to reply sarcastically, but he was too tired to deal with the imminent argument that was sure to follow. He just nodded with a small smirk. "oh…" A deafening silence followed Renji's mumbled reply.

Shirogetsu chose that time to speak up again.

**~ Awkward silence much?~**

He joked. Ichigo sighed, since when was his inner hollow ever so talkative?

**~Since you actually started listening to me~**

He said smugly. Ichigo scowled.

"_Stop reading my thoughts! It's irritating!" _he yelled mentally. His inner hollow just snickered. Ichigo returned his attention from his mind to the awkward atmosphere in his room in the forth division.

"So what are you doing here anyways?" he asked Renji, breaking the silence. The red head shuffled his feet (That were also bandaged) nervously.

"Well, I was just trying to find you Rukia." he said to the petite woman with a cautious glance towards Ichigo. The latter narrowed his eyes and tilted his head in thought. _"What's up with him?" _he thought to himself.

**~He's Afraid of us Aibou, well… afraid of me more like~ **

His doppelganger replied. Ichigo looked at Renji with a grim look, he understood somewhat. His inner hollow did almost kill the vice captain. He was brought out of his musings as Rukia replied to Renji.

"Well, what did you need me for?" She asked. Renji regained his composure at her question, and gave her a serious look.

"Byakuya's awake." was his simple answer

* * *

><p>Rukia gasped in surprise and stood from her seat. She turned to Ichigo,<p>

"I have to go see him!" She said urgently. Ichigo nodded,

"I'll go with you then, I should apologize or something anyways." He said and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He winced when his feet touched the cold tile floor. Rukia frowned at him and protested.

"You cant get out of bed yet idiot! You heard what Unohana Taicho said didn't you? You were told to stay in bed and get some rest, your still recovering." She said sternly. Ichigo scowled and stood up anyways. He wobbled a bit and sucked in a breath as the pain intensified. He took a step forward to steady himself.

"Yeah, well since when did I ever listen to orders anyways. He said with a arrogant smirk as he crossed his arms.

Renji moved in front of Ichigo and placed a hand on his chest, stopping the teen from moving any further. He might have been scared of Ichigo's inner hollow, but the teen was still his nakama.

"Ichigo, you need to stay here and rest. What if your hollow starts fighting for control again? Head Captain Yamamoto said-"

"I know Renji! And when have I ever listened to that own man?" Ichigo seethed and slapped his hand away. Even though Renji didn't know any better, he was still ticked about the hollow comment. Renji flinched and retorted angrily,

"Im just trying to help! I don't want that monster to take over you again! Yamamoto will give the order to kill you if it happens again!" He yelled desperately with his fists clenched at his sides.

Ichigo glared.

"He's not a monster!" Ichigo roared.

Time stood still.

Ichigo froze. _"Ah crap" _he thought.

**~Ha-ha, BUSTED!~**

His white double sang.

Ichigo gulped at the surprised and bewildered looks his two nakama were giving him. How did he get himself into these messes?

"Not a mons-… what are you talking about Ichigo?" Rukia asked in a small voice as she looked up at him with confused and frightened eyes. Renji just stared at him with apprehension at his outburst. Ichigo scowled and ran a hand through his hair in frustration.

"Ah… its nothing, he's a hollow, not a monster. There's a difference. Now are we going to see Byakuya or not?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, trying to change the subject.

"We are, you aren't." The red head said coldly. "Just stay here." Ichigo sighed, "Im fine guys, really, stop worrying, I can handle myse-"

"WELL OBVIOUSLY YOU CANT!" Rukia shouted. Ichigo blinked in shock. "You were just taken over by your inner hollow, Ichigo! No less than 5 hours ago, you were fighting the captains, and your friends, as well as destroying Serietei! And you were having trouble with him before all this started! So don't give me any crap about how you can take care of yourself, because you cant! No all the time, sometimes you cant do everything by yourself and need help! That is what we, your friends are here for! To help you! Cant you just ignore your pride and accept help when you need it for ONCE!"

Rukia had tears in her eyes as she poured out all of her pent up feelings, looking at Ichigo with a pleading look.

Ichigo, and Renji just looked at Rukia, mouths agape in shock. Even Shirogetsu was silent in shock, Ichigo noticed.

"Rukia…"

Ichigo muttered, still in shock. _"She has had that on her mind the entire time?" _He thought guiltily. Rukia stepped up to him slowly, slightly panting from yelling so hard. She slowly brought her arms up and wrapped them around Ichigo's torso, and buried her head in his chest. The latter stiffened in shock at the unexpected gesture.

"Baka, just stay here." she said and sniffled. Ichigo just nodded dumbly and sat down on the bed behind him, once she let go of his midriff. She smiled and grabbed Renji's arm, and left the room. Ichigo faintly herd Renji as the two made there way down the hallway,

" That was awesome! You just yell at him and cry a little, and he just obeys you instantly? How does that wor- agh!" he yelped. Ichigo suspected he just got a kick in the shin. Confirmed when he herd Rukia's reply,

"I was not crying idiot!"

There voices faded away as Ichigo sat on the bed a bewildered look still on his face.

"What the heck just happened?" Ichigo thought.

**~ Heh, I'd say you just got owned by a girl! Che, I didn't think the midget had it in her…~ **

Shirogetsu mused.

Ichigo didn't argue.

* * *

><p><em>Authors note: Ok who thinks that Ichi can be such an idiot sometimes…anyone? Well anyways, just a little fluffy stuff, not really romance, and probably never will be. I cant write romance worth a crap… but I might do a little here and there…maybe.<em>

_Ah, I love writing Shirogetsu! His personality is awesome, and I hope I do him justice and he is not too OOC…_

_**IMPORTANT! MUST READ:**_

_Ok, first, I hate to have to so this, but Im going on a hiatus. Im going to try to finish most of the story, so that I can update faster and on schedule. I know you hate me 'cause I know that I hate it when stories Im reading go on hiatus…_

_And second, I have some questions,_

_Do you think Rukia and Renji, and Ichigo's other friends or soul society should find out about Shirogetsu ? When? Next chapter, or later? Any ideas on there reaction? Who do you think is behind everything?_

_I would some input or your own ideas on what you want to happen! Press that Review button :D_

_So….. IM SORRY DON'T SHOOT MEH FOR HIATUS! *is shot*_

_So yeah, next update might not be for a while…probably as long as this chapter took…._

_HOWEVER, the more ideas you give, the faster I write, and the more inspiration I get, so PLEEEEEEEEESE REVIEW! 8D_


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